Noblesse's Fairy Tail
by sreshtiyer
Summary: Wounded and almost dead, Raizel enters his sleep to recover after his fight with Muzaka, not expecting to wake up for the next few centuries. But as fate would have it, he is found within a few days by the members of one of the most famous and liveliest guilds in Fiore. Follow Raizel and FT as they gradually uncover the secrets of the conspiracy that connects their lives.
1. Chapter 1: - The coffin

**Hey guys, so this is the full length story I was planning, due to time restraints, I couldn't start writing. So is set immediately after the battle Rai has with Muzaka and is injured, and I mean literally at the next instant Rai finishes his battle. In the FT timeline, after the lullaby arc. Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer:- Noblesse and Fairy Tail belong to Son Jeho/Lee Kwangsu and Hiro Mashima respectively. I only own this crossover. The cover art for this fanfiction belongs to camellia029 (deviantart).**

 **Chapter 1:- The coffin**

Extreme fatigue. Darkness clouding his sharp, red eyes. Cadis Etrama di Raizel, the noblesse left a trail of blood as he flew away from the blast that engulfed his best and only friend, Muzaka the werewolf lord. The wound on his left abdomen was bleeding profusely, and he knew he would have to hibernate, and with his condition as bad as it was, he would sleep for eons. Raizel cupped his mouth with his free hand and coughed violently, narrowing his eyes. Jumping from one pillar to another, leaving trails of his already fading blood wings, he landed on a clearing in a huge pillar, and with trembling hands, took out the earring Lord had given him, and clicked it on his left ear. His blood wings completely disappeared and the pain dissipated a little. He was bleeding from his mouth, eyes and ears, apart from the injuries he had sustained from Muzaka's attacks. Looking back one last time, he thought of his friend, with a mixture of sadness and helplessness.

" _Muzaka…..I'm sorry_ " were his last thoughts before the darkness covered his eyes completely, the world started spinning as he let his body slide over the edge. A swirling red mist covered is body and transformed into his coffin, that now plummeted into the ocean, becoming smaller and smaller, until it disappeared amongst its raging depths.

 **A few days later, Fairy Tail guild**

"The air is way better outdoors! It's really the best! Freedom is wonderful! Freeeeedooooommm!" shouted Natsu, rampaging around the guild, spewing flames from his mouth.

"Shut it, Natsu!"

"Eat quietly!"

"He should have stayed in jail a little while longer" said Lucy, sweatdropping. "I can't believe the arrest was just a formality….I wasted my time worrying…" she continued, dropping into the table.

"Say, what happened to the duel of men between Erza and Natsu?" inquired Elfman.

"Men?!"

"Oh yeah, I forgot!Erzaaaa!Let's continue!Here I come!" declared the pink haired dragon slayer, charging up a Fire Dragon's Fist and rushing towards Erza. The scarlet haired beauty just sighed and swung her sword with so much force that the entire table was destroyed, along with sending Natsu flying some 20 feet away. Gray, Elfman and Lucy's jaws dropped and the trio backed away scared. Natsu continued bouncing away from the momentum of the attack as he toppled over several other tables and guild mates, before finally slumping over a wall out cold.

"If you really want to, then bring it on" challenged Titania.

"Aaand you're ooout!" declared Happy.

"Gyaaaahaahahah you're so lame natsu!"

"Erza's strong indeed!"

"Is the bet from the other day still on?"

"Oh my, you wrecked the store again" said a smiling Mirajane.

On the other end, Makarov, the guild master started drooping. "What's wrong, master?" asked the white haired beauty.

"Nothing….just getting sleepy" came the drowsy reply. "It's him"

One by one, all the members started to sway and fell on their tracks, as a robed figure made its way into the guild, carrying what appeared to be a huge coffin.

"Mistogun" announced Makarov. "What's that you're carrying?" he asked.

"Oh this? I found it during my mission, it releases a strange energy, I am unable to open it. Strange, because it came from deep within the ocean. A normal coffin would've been destroyed from the water pressure and it would've been impossible to retrieve it without magic. I was hoping you would know what to do." He replied, setting it down. It was the strangest coffin Makarov had ever seen. It was completely black, with sleek golden linings along its edges. The most eye catching feature was however a giant silver cross that adorned the lid. And true enough, it released a strange energy, the likes of which Makarov had never encountered.

"Hmm…..peculiar indeed. Very well, I'll see what I can do" replied the old master. Mistogun grabbed another request from the board. "I'm leaving" he said, making his way to the exit.

"Hey! Release your sleep magic!" reminded Makarov.

"Five, four, three, two, one…." He counted, disappearing along with the count. The next instant, all the occupants in the room jerked awake, apart from Natsu, whom happy watched deadpanned.

"Th..this feeling! Was it mistogun?!"

"That punk!"

"His sleep magic is so strong!"

"Mistogun?" asked Lucy, rubbing her eyes.

"He is one of the most powerful mages in Fairy Tail" answered Loki, but seeing Lucy, gaped and Lucy mirrored his reaction.

"For some reason, he hates to be seen, that's why he puts everyone to sleep. So only master knows his face" explained Gray, who was clothed for once.

"What the?! That sounds fishy" remarked the blonde.

"No, I know it as well" came a voice from above. Lucy turned to see the source of the voice.

"Oh and that's also one of the strongest mages in Fairy Tail, the grandson of master, Laxus" added the Ice mage. Lucy gasped.

"Mistogun is too shy, just don't question it too much" said the lightning mage.

"LAXUS! FIGHT ME!" demanded Natsu, finally jerking awake. "If you can't even win against Erza, you won't stand a chance against me" smirked Laxus.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" glared the red haired beauty.

"I mean, I'm the strongest!"

"If you wanna fight me, why don't you come on up?"

"Here I come!" shouted Natsu, charging up, but not before a giant hand squashed him flat against the table. "You can't go to the second floor yet" said the master calmly. "You too Laxus, stop it" he added.

"I'll never give FT's strongest position to anyone, not to Erza, Mistogun and even to that old geezer! I'm…..the strongest!" retorted Laxus, before leaving, leaving sour looks on the people below. Elsewhere, Mira explained the S-class rule, making her known of the magnitude of things that occurred.

"By the way master, what's with the coffin? Is it from Mistogun?" asked Mira.

"It's so elegant looking, even for something so morbid" remarked Erza.

"Yeah, he said he found it in his mission, and that he couldn't open it no matter what he tried. It's covered with a strange energy, and was lying on the ocean floor" All the nearby guild members gathered around.

"The ocean?! How is it in one piece then?!" exclaimed Lucy.

"Only one to find out. Mistogun uses a very different type of magic, so maybe I might be able to open it with magic that's more familiar. Hmm….." trailed off the master, and then "Natsu, you give it a try, with your dragon slayer magic" said the old master.

"Hell yeah!" grinned Natsu, smashing his fists together, releasing a burst of flame. He dashed forwards, retracting his flaming hands backwards.

"Fire Dragon's Fi-" before he could land the punch the coffin slid open on its own, releasing steam.

"Hold it!" said the master, backhanding Natsu and sending him flying. Inside lay an extremely handsome and elegant looking man, with scarlet-red eyes and jet black hair. He had a silver cross earring on his left ear, black full sleeve shirt with gold lining along the neck and black pants, with similar gold linings in them. He had a stoic and regal demeanor, which was an awe inspiring sight to behold. But what immediately caught their attention was the numerous injuries on his body. No human could've inflicted the slash marks in his abdomen and his face, each one occurring as a pair of three, each slash at least an inch thick. The sides of his mouth, eyes and ears had streaks of dried blood, indicating the severity of his injuries. Even the sides of his arms had blood on them, having flowed down from his shoulder blades. All the members in the vicinity gasped.

"Oh god…..!" said Mira, cupping her hands to her mouth.

"Who or what could've caused such injuries?!" wondered Erza, mirroring Mira's expression. Seeing so much blood, Levy swayed and fainted.

"This is horrible…." Said Lucy in a small voice.

"I can't believe it….he's still alive!" exclaimed Gray "Look, he's still breathing!" he added, pointing towards his face. Everyone turned to the man and discovered that he was indeed alive. Breathing steadily, as if in a deep, deep sleep. The injuries too, were slowly, almost unnoticeably healing.

"Unbelievable" said Elfman.

"He must be pretty strong or pretty lucky, to be still alive with such injuries" commented Natsu, scratching his head. "Aye" agreed Happy.

"Then why is he in a coffin?" inquired Erza.

"Answers can be found later, right now, we need to help him. For all we know, he could still be in mortal danger. I know of a person who may be able to help him, I'm going to get her. Until then, take care as to no harm befalls him. Whatever did this to him, might be back and it might be too much even for us. We need to be prepared if that happens" said Makarov, jumping down and walking towards the door.

"But master, what if he attacks us after he wakes up? For all we know, he could be an evil person" asked Erza.

"You have a point, but for some reason, I feel he means us no harm. I can't quite explain it, but trust me this once" assured the old master.

"Alright…." Agreed the red haired beauty, somewhat satisfied.

Sometime later, the guild door swung open, to reveal Makarov walking along with a slim and tall elderly woman with pink hair, tied in a bun on the back of her head by two large pins with crescent moon-shaped edges, and with two bangs of hair left framing her face.

"….so once Natsu tried attacking, the coffin opened on its own, and someone was inside it, not dead. This man is seriously injured, and the injuries are out of the world, no creature I know of could've done something like this. I can even sense strange energy from those wounds. What's more strange, his injuries are slowly, but surely healing"

"I see…..I can't say anything for sure until I see him in person" replied the old lady. "Hmph, this place is still as messy as ever" she grunted, looking around. Makarov dropped his head a bit and continued to take the old lady to the coffin. Porlyusica peered into the coffin and flinched at first, but said nothing and examined him.

"My god…This is…..!" gasped the pink haired woman, cupping her hands, then she stood up and walked up to Makarov. "Whatever attacked him must've been insanely strong….because like you said, his injuries are slowly healing"

"Hmm….but why do you think the creature must be so strong?" inquired Makarov. "He could've just used some healing magic during his fight, or some potions" But Porlyusica nodded in the negative.

"It's not as simple as that. I found no trace of magical energy. In fact, he's not even a mage" she explained. This shocked everyone.

"Wha-?!"

"He's not a mage?! Then how did he…."

"Unbelievable…even mages would have to be extremely lucky to be alive after such injuries…." Said Erza with wide eyes. "He must really be unbelievably strong"

"But if he's not a mage, how are his wounds healing?" pointed Gray.

"Yes I was getting to that. On the surface, he seems to possess no magical energy. But he does have some strange abilities. For example, how he is healing himself. His blood is 'rebuilding' itself, that's the best way I can describe it. Or you could say, he has regenerative powers. Honestly, I've never seen anything like it" she explained. "Although, how his body has such powers, I do not know" Yet again, everyone listened astonished at the new information.

"Can't we talk about all this later and treat him first?" asked Lucy in a serious tone.

"Is there any way you can help him?" asked Mira, concerned.

"Hmm, I can't say for sure, but I'll try my best" she replied. "In any case, I need some of you to move him to-". Suddenly, there was a movement in the coffin and the Raizel picked himself up with great effort, staggering, and looked around and raised his eyes a bit, surprised by the crowd assembled around him.

"Hey you shouldn't be getting up just yet! You're in a really bad shape!" shouted Porlyusica, striding forwards to support him.

"… _Who are you_ …..?"

"Huh?"

"What did he say? Is that another language?" asked Natsu, with a dumbfounded look. He went up to him and waved his hands in front of his face.

"Hey! Do you speak our language?You should let us help, you're injured really badly, you'll die otherwise!" The man remained quiet, with a blank look on his face.

"Heeeeyyyyy! Say something!"

"…Why did you wake me up…?" asked the man.

"Huh? Suddenly you can speak our language? Well, you were…..are in a really bad shape, so we were going to help you…."

"….You can't help me….."

"Now listen here you, I don't know who you are or where you're from, but when I see someone so hurt, you expect a healing mage such as myself to walk away? Don't kid me! You're gonna stay put right here until I feel satisfied, you understand?" chided Porlyusica, with a vein popping in her head. The man didn't respond at all, nevertheless, she dragged him into another room. All the onlookers sweatdropped.

" *sigh* I guess that takes of that huh?" remarked Lucy, deadpanned.

"No matter how strong one is, no one messes with her" whispered Makarov, in a tiny voice. The others sweatdropped again and waited for the healer mage to return.

 **That's it folks! It's shorter than I would've liked, but I wanna save the next part for the next chapter and I'm planning something interesting. I'll try to update as frequently as possible. Hope you enjoyed it and if you've read the one-shot version, hope you like this one as well! Thanks for reading! Until next time!**


	2. Chapter 2: - Entry to Fairy Tail

**Wow, I was really surprised by the number of views, favorites, follows and reviews from everyone! Thank you so much for reading, I'm glad you liked it! Oh and sorry about that little mistake in the last chapter about Raizel's eyes, my bad! I would like to thank KoaNLaG for correcting me. So in the future, please don't hesitate to correct me if you do find something, I'll be glad to listen to whatever you have to say! Well anyways, on to the next chapter!**

 **Chapter 2 :- Entry to Fairy Tail**

Porlyusica dragged Raizel and seated him in a cot, and proceeded to get a cloth and some alcohol. She soaked the cloth in some water, and gently cleaned all of his wounds and then rubbed alcohol over them, performing the necessary first aid. Once she was done cleaning the blood off of his face, she gasped again.

"Oh my! Aren't you a handsome one! Makes me wish I was young again!" she remarked dreamily, her hands on her blushing cheeks. A moment later, she also realized that along with the blood, his claw marks also disappeared. "Huh, where did all those marks go? That's strange….you're healed already?! That's an amazing ability you have there, especially considering how you don't have magic…..even the wounds were out of the ordinary, having such strange energy, I was sure I would have to dispel that energy to heal you, since it was impeding your healing process…..curious" Raizel said nothing and only continued to watch her treat him with a straight face. "I'm going to have to remove your shirt for a second" she mentioned and then, she unbuttoned his shirt to treat the wounds in his chest and after she was done cleaning him completely, what she saw, she'll remember for the rest of her life. His torso lay bare for her eyes to see, and as if by reflex, blood spurted out of her nose. "Oh dear me~~~, what have I done~~~~!" she said dreamily like a teenager, looking away and with her hand on her forehead and an awkward smile pasted on her face. Yet again, Raizel simply cocked his head with a slightly confused look, not understanding what was happening to the old mage.

 **Meanwhile, on the outside-**

The guild members of FT were waiting anxiously to hear news about the strange man from Porlyusica. Apart from his condition, they also had a lot of question they wanted answered about who he was, where he came from and how he got there in such a bad condition. Nobody said a word, being lost in their own thoughts. Natsu finally broke the silence.

"So gramps, what do you think about him? You said something about some strange energy right? Even Porlyusica-san didn't explain anything clearly" he asked.

"Hrmm….I really can't say anything for sure, what I did notice in the short time I observed him was that he did not possess any magical energy himself, like Porlyusica herself mentioned. Apart from that, his wounds emitted a strange energy, one that I've never felt before. I guess we'll simply have to wait for Porlyusica to tell us something" said Makarov. The guild went silent again. The minutes painfully ticked by, until finally when Porlyusica came out of the door. Instantaneously, as if by reflex, every turned to her with questioning looks. She seemed a bit different than when she went in, but no one could tell what was different about her. Strangely enough, she too, remained silent.

"So? What gives? What happened to him?" prodded the ice mage.

"He'll be fine, surprisingly, as soon as I just gave him basic first aid, all of his wounds disappeared, as if they were never there. Not even a scar….his regenerative ability is amazing to say the least. But still, that seems to be about it, he probably just got lucky enough to survive against whatever attacked him and his ability must have given him some time. I doubt he's a seasoned fighter, since he doesn't have any magic. He's still very fatigued, so he'll need more rest before he can move about. Just make sure he doesn't leave bed for a few more days, his condition is still very severe, I don't know what did this to him, so I can't treat him completely. I've given him a potion that'll help him restore his strength, so it should be fine." She explained, but before leaving, the old mage gave a final glance at him, quickly turned her head and without looking at anyone, strode out of the guild quickly.

"Huh? What was that about?" wondered Lucy.

"Well master, it seems you were right, that man turned out to be harmless after all. So, what do you plan to do with him?" questioned Erza.

"For now, let's let him rest at our place as our guest. We could ask him about where he came from and guide him back there, lest he is attacked again" replied the master.

"I really want to fight that guy" declared Natsu, in a hopeful tone.

"Didn't you hear what old lady Porlyusica said dumbass? She said he was hardly a fighter and that strange ability of his is the only thing he has and the only thing that kept him alive. Fighting him would defeat the purpose of helping him recover" reprimanded Elfman deadpanned. Natsu drooped disappointed.

"Well, in any case, we should all get back to work and leave him be for now, so all of you can get back to whatever you are doing" said Mira. But the master nodded in disagreement.

"Hmm….maybe it would be better if all of us spent the day here in the guild, just for today. That man is our guest, in our protection. If something were to be coming after him, it's our duty to protect him. So, I would like it if you all simply spent the day here in the guild" requested Makarov.

"That seems fine too master, no problem" assured Erza.

"I hope I get to fight the guy that attacked him!" declared Natsu.

"Idiot, we're only here to safeguard him" reminded Gray.

Inside, Raizel stared at the potion left behind by the old lady (who was still far, far younger than him, so Raizel wondered about thinking about her as an 'old lady') and vaguely remembered what she had told him.

" _I don't know how you got yourself in that condition, but I can see that apart from your wounds, you look so worn out and weak. Here, take this potion, it should help you recover some strength, but since I don't know much about your injuries, I'm sorry, but this is the best I can do. Hopefully, you'll atleast feel slightly better after taking this. Do let your body rest up a while though, before heading out again"_

Raizel opened the slim bottle it was stored in and took a small sip. "…Bitter….". He felt his fatigue disappear and the pain in his body become bearable. Getting up, the noblesse released a miniscule amount of his power and restored his tattered clothing to its former royal self. Then, like an arrow, the voice of his trusted servant and companion entered his head, calling out to him. Raizel jerked his head in mild surprise, acknowledging the voice.

" _I'm here, Frankenstein"_

 **Lukedonia, Raizel's mansion**

Frankenstein paced around the veranda from where Raizel left so abruptly after a huge energy covered the skies a few days back. His beloved master was still nowhere to be found and Frankenstein was beginning to get incredibly worried. It was unlike his introverted master to be out for so long, and he hadn't been out for this long even during his visits to Muzaka's place. Even given his appalling sense of direction, it was unlike him to have been lost for so long. Not having any kind of head start, the blonde scientist decided to go check in with the nobles in Lukedonia, hoping to hear any kind of news appealing to his ears. However, before he could leave, knocks could be heard at the door. Startled and excited, he dashed to the door, almost expecting to see his master.

"Master, I'm glad you're ba-" But disappointment lit his face when he saw the familiar face of not his master but Rajak Kertia, the current family leader of the kertia house.

"You don't seem too happy to see me for some reason" noted Rajak.

"Ah sorry about that, I was just worried that Master hasn't returned for so long. This isn't like him" replied Franky.

"Raizel-nim isn't here too?! Which reminds me, I was actually sent here by Lord to investigate about his disappearance. Which is why Lord requested that I bring you to him" explained the Kertia family leader.

"Coincidentally, I was going to go meet Lord myself" answered the blonde and both of them proceed together.

 **Throne Room, Lukedonia**

The doors to the majestic throne room flew open and two individuals that entered were greeted by a line of family leaders on either side and overseeing them all stood the regal lord of the nobles. The air was thick with his royal aura, the family leaders stiff with tension. All wondered why they had been called on such short notice.

" *sigh* With our current situation, I can't really call out any jokes about calling Raizel here to get him out of the house, can I?" sighed the Lord. Aaand immediately the tension in the air broke, and the 'Royal Aura' disappeared as soon as it came. All the leaders and Frankenstein watched deadpanned.

"L..Lord, how can you be so calm even now?" asked Gechutel Landegre, the family leader of the Landegre family, sweatdropping.

"Come now Gechutel, It's not that I'm not worried about Raizel, I really am very concerned, It's just that there's no use panicking, so I'm just trying to relax my nerves a bit" explained the carefree lord.

" *ahem* so Lord, why did you call all of us here? Do you have any kind of lead on where Master might be?" asked Frankenstein.

"Actually, I called everyone here to hear from you, where Raizel might have gone, since none of us have any idea of his disappearance. But it seems you're on the same boat as us" replied the Lord in a matter-of-factly way.

"What do you mean by the same boat, Lord? I don't see any here" asked Ragya.

"Oh Lord, that was a figure of speech! I meant Franky here is in the same state as us! Seriously, you guys really need to visit the human world sometimes!" sighed the Lord heavily.

"Anyways I'm well aware about his sad sense of direction, so normally I wouldn't be this worried. But the fact that he's not returned since that huge energy filled the skies a few days back does" he continued in a serious tone.

"Lord, I may be mistaken, but that energy might have belonged to Muzaka, the lord of the werewolves" suggested Zarga Siriana.

"I agree lord, Raizel-nim goes to meet Muzaka much too often, as much as it pains me to say this, I always feared such a day would definitely come" added Urokai Agvain.

"Lord, the werewolves have always done as they pleased, without heeding to our warnings about attacking the humans. You've spoken to Muzaka-nim yourself on this matter. Unlike us, their leadership is decided by strength alone, so the Lord of the werewolves can be challenged anytime for any decision they make and hence the leaders of the werewolf clan go with whatever their entire family says. It could be possible that Muzaka-nim had to follow his family in attacking the humans and Raizel-nim decided to stop them" explained Ragus Tardio.

" *sigh* really now, of all the things that could've happened, **those two** had to fight…" sighed the Lord.

"If that really is the case, master and Muzaka wouldn't have come out without grievous injuries. I can't believe those bastards decided to attack master…..if I find them,…." Muttered Frankenstein, clenching his arm. He didn't realise that he released some of his energy in his anger. Needless to say, this was not unnoticed by the others present in the room.

"Frankenstein, calm down, I know how you feel, but our first priority should be finding him. You share a connection with your beloved master, don't you? Why didn't you try using that to find him?"

And all of a sudden, Frankenstein's energy instantly vanished. There was a long silence in the room.

"….I could do that" agreed the scientist, deadpanned, which earned similar reactions from the other nobles. Frankenstein immediately closed his eyes and focused on the thin strand of energy that connected them. Normally, even two nobles with contracts could not feel the other being so far away, but the noblesse's case was different and special. Franky stood motionless for a while, following which he suddenly opened his eyes, indicating his success in connecting with his master's mind.

"…. _Master?!..."_

" _I'm here, Frankenstein"_ acknowledged the noblesse _._

" _Master, are you alright? What happened? Where are you right now?!"_

" _Calm down, Frankenstein. Ask one by one"_

" _Oh, ok, master. Are you alright? The other nobles said you might have fought Muzaka-nim"_

"… _..yes, that's right. I did fight him. Both of us were severely injured, I do not know what happened to him. I left, badly injured and entered hibernation due to my injuries. I would not have awoken, had it not been for the people of the land here. They treated my wounds and helped me heal a bit."_

" _Huh? Someone found you, master? Are they humans?"_

" _Yes, they are humans, but these humans seem to possess abilities. They call it magic. They gave me a drink that recovered a bit of my strength. I am staying with them right now. From what I learnt from reading the mind of one such human, this is a country called 'Fiore'. I am in a place called 'Fairy Tail' in the town of magnolia"_

" _Alright master, I shall be there soon. Please wait for me till then"_

" _Frankenstein"_

" _Yes master?"_

" _You don't need to worry. I am feeling alright now, thanks to the people here. Please tell the Lord not to worry either"_

"… _If you say so master"_

Frankenstein fell back into reality, and had a mixture of emotions painted on his face.

"So, what happened? So much curiosity could kill a young man such as me!" said the Lord. The leaders sweatdropped again.

"Master is alive but hurt, and like Ragus here pointed out, master and Muzaka-nim did have a dual. And then,…" Frankenstein spent the next few minutes spending everything his master told him.

"Fiore?! He's gone there of all the places?" exclaimed the Lord, with a serious look, something that most leaders hadn't seen in a while.

"Fiore, Lord?" asked Gechutel.

"Oh well, might as well explain everyone, if dear Raizel is there now. There is a region called Earthland where gifted humans reside. No, it's more accurate to say it's a special region where a mythical, magical energy exists. Humans who reside here are able to channel that magic power into their bodies and gain various abilities. For example, the ability to control water, fire etc. Because of the nature of this place, it was decided to be sealed away from the rest of the world, lest others discover and try to use it for evil purposes. Hence, the very first Lord of the nobles, werewolves and the Lords of the regions of Earthland decided to hide it in a separate plane of existence. Not unlike how Lukedonia is hidden in a special barrier" he explained. "Because of this, the kind of beings found there are also very different from the ones found elsewhere. They have adapted to the magical nature of the land. Various kinds of mythical beasts can also be found there. So you could say it's a different kind of world than the ones we normally know. Humans as we know aren't as weak as the regular humans we find here. If fact, the strongest ones could be even stronger than us Family leaders" he further added.

"Humans stronger than family leaders…!" remarked Gechutel. But then again, there was one standing right in front of them. Even Ragya was astonished. Knowing how strong Frankenstein could be gave them a fair idea of the kind of place it could be. A land where humans as strong as Frankenstein was something outworldly to them.

"Interesting…..to think such a place existed all this time" mentioned Frankenstein. Unnoticed to all of them however, six other family leaders were unfazed by this supposedly new information. Their only reaction was of surprise when Frankenstein mentioned the fact that Raizel was now in Fiore.

"So, it would be safe to assume that this 'Fiore' is a country in Earthland. Because the entire dimension is sealed away by a barrier, it would have been impossible to enter normally. The only explanation I can think of is that the battle between Raizel and Muzaka was so intense, that their energies opened a rip in that barrier, and as Raizel withdrew from that battle, he accidentally entered that portal and into Earthland. He must have been found by the inhabitants of that country and must be in their company." The Lord hypothesized.

"Yes, that must explain everything, master did say that the people there helped him recover some of his strength back. Although, I think master only recovered from fatigue, his actual life force must be dwindling on a thin strand of existence after his battle. I'm surprised that master is even in a condition to stand. Normally, he would've entered hibernation for an extended period of time" added Frankenstein. "In any case, I must go. How do I get to Earthland if it's hidden by a barrier?"

"The barrier can only be opened by someone of royal blood. Only the lord of the werevolves, the lord of the nobles, Raizel or the lords of the region of Earthland can open it. Sucks to be you! Hahaha!" retorted Lord, going back to his previous demeanour, and the tension in the air fell just like that.

"L..Lord, why would you put it that way..?" asked an exasperated Gechutel.

"I'm just kidding! Pfft! You should've seen the look on your face Frankenstein" A vein popped in his head, and Frankenstein force a smile.

"Haha, very funny. I'm sure I can figure out a way. Just tell me where the place is" he demanded.

"Must you always be so tense? I'm here to help out Raizel just as much as you. Don't worry. I'm well aware of the barrier. Which is why I've thought of something" he said, waving his hands. "Raskreia!" he called out. From the background, a figure that was silent all this while stepped forward. Raskreia, the one and only heir to the Lord of the nobles bowed slightly in front of her father and addressed in a highly formal manner.

"You called, Lord?" she asked in a monotonous tone.

"How many times have I told you Raskreia, not to be so stiff while talking to me, I **am** your father after all…" sighed the Lord. "Well anyways, I assume you've been following everything that was being said here?" Raskreia nodded in acknowledgement. "What is my task?" she asked.

"This is what you need to do. Since only those of royal blood can open the barrier and since you are the only other person who knows the way there, accompany Frankenstein to Earthland and assist him to find Raizel. Once you find him, well…..I haven't thought about that yet, but perhaps you could return with Raizel himself? I'm sure you can give him some company. Having this peacock here as his only familiar company must be tiring for him as well" he snorted. Another vein popped in Frankenstein's head.

"L..Lord, perhaps we should prepare them for the journey…" suggested Rajak, deadpanned.

"No need for that, we're leaving…I can't waste time here while master is in a foreign land" replied Frankenstein. "So if you're ready, Raskreia, we should leave" he added, looking at Raskreia.

"Hmph, don't act so familiar with me" she retorted back, but following him nonetheless as they both sped off to Earthland.

"Good luck! And Raskreia, do try to get along with them this time at least…." Waved the Lord, in a hopeful tone.

 **Sometime later, at the Earthland Barrier**

"Why did we stop?" asked the blonde scientist.

"We've arrived" came the reply, and Raskreia gathered some energy in her hands and made a pattern out of her energy, which resonated with what seemed to be thin air, and then the pattern illuminated a huge energy field, which then opened up to reveal an opening.

"Through here" she pointed, and jumped in. Frankenstein followed in. Both of them landed in a forest, surrounded by tall trees and shrubs as far as the eye could see. Frankenstein immediately noticed the change in the environment. The air itself was brimming with life energy, and there was a strange pressurising feeling throughout the fibre of his being. It was neither refreshing nor repressing.

"So, this is 'Earthland' and the energy contained within it" muttered Frankenstein to himself. "Now, to find this 'Fairy Tail'…. " he looked around,in hopes of sensing some signs of life, but found nothing. He then turned to his companion.

"Stay here, I'll take a look around" mentioned Frankenstein, and jumped to the top of one of the trees. A moment later, he jumped back down and rendezvoused with Raskreia.

"There's a town in this direction. We should as one of them where this 'Fairy Tail' guild is" Raskreia gave an approving nod and the duo again sped off.

 **Fairy Tail Guild**

The members who would normally be on their way home or in a mission now spent their time in the guild, keeping it as lively as possible to pass the time. Cana drowned herself in what seemed to be the 3rd or 4th barrel of alcohol, which as usual gained the criticism of Wakaba and Macao. Erza practiced her routine swings on a wooden dummy, and sometimes Natsu would lend her a hand. Gray used the spent alcohol barrels of Cana to slide along the length of the guild floor, knocking down and freezing whoever was unfortunate enough to happen on his way. Everytime he crashed, mystically his clothes would disappear. Lucy stood and watched, sweatdropping every time their madness kicked up another notch. Mira worked nonstop to serve the people in the guild and Elf man would challenge everyone with is 'manly' comments. Every once in a while, Makarov would stop the others from going overboard. The chaos continued for a while, until knocks could be heard at the guild's entrance. No one could hear it at first, except for Mira and she got the door. Upon seeing their faces, she was at a loss for words.

Standing before her were two of the most _beautiful_ people she had seen. The man was very tall and had shoulder-length silky blonde hair, with bright blue eyes and a very cheerful smile. He was dressed in a formal attire. The woman on the other hand, had long, straight, black hair and ruby red eyes. She too, was dressed in a formal attire of a different kind from that of the man.

"Good evening, is this the mage guild 'Fairy Tail' ?" he asked with a smile. At first, the white haired beauty said nothing, still at a loss of words from looking at their faces. Then, she shook out of her trance.

"Y..Yes it is, welcome to Fairy Tail! How may I help you today?" she inquired.

"We came here looking for a man by the name of Raizel, he was badly injured during a fight, we've come here after hearing about his condition. If he is here, could you let us see him?" he asked again. Hearing that, Mira tensed up a bit.

"How do I know you are not the same people who hurt him?" she inquired.

"That's because Raizel-nim is my master who I faithfully serve, and it is my duty to be by his side during his ordeals. Also, our minds are connected being master and servant, hence it was my master himself who told me everything about what happened to him." Explained the blonde scientist. "And besides, do I look like I could've been the one who attacked him, given the nature of his _wounds"_ this took Mira by surprise, since no other than the members of FT and Porlyusica knew about his condition. Convinced a little bit, she invited them both inside.

"I thank you for looking after master when he was injured and treating his injuries. I promise this won't go unpaid" said Frankenstein with a slight bow.

"How did you…?!"

"I told you, didn't I? Master told me about your guild helping him recover" he told simply. This convinced her a lot more and she led them in more confidently. The members all paused whatever they were doing and turned to look at the newcomers.

"Who are these people, Mira?" inquired Makarov.

"Master, these people are…..people who are close to that man, Raizel. They've come here to see him" she replied.

"But Mira, what if they…"

"I know master, but rest assured, they've proven themselves to have come here out of goodwill for that man"

"Hrmm…if you say so…Please come here, he is resting for now to recover from his injuries. Our healer helped him with his health" said Makarov, pointing them to Raizel's room.

"Yes I know, master told me, and I am very grateful to FT for helping my master in his most dire moment" repeated Frankenstein in a kind tone, the gratitude openly shown in his voice. The others watched confused, while the two entered and after the doors closed, everyone gathered around waiting for their return with even more questions than they had when Raizel first came.

 **Whew, that took more time than I thought! Hope you like it, and thanks a lot again for all of your reviews, favorites and follows! Regarding reviews, I normally send a PM in response to your review, but if you can't receive my replies to you in a PM, do let me know, I'll reply here in the author's note of each chapter. I just don't want anyone to feel that I'm not looking at your responses, because I am and I'm very happy for any inputs you have. Thanks again, and I'll see you soon!**


	3. Chapter 3: - Membership for 3

**Hey guys, yet again, I'm overwhelmed by the response this story has gotten so far, and in only the first 2 chapters at that! So thanks a lot for supporting my story and following, favorite and the reviews as well! Do continue to support the story in the future as well. Once again, if you can't see my reply to your reviews, do let me know, and I'll reply here in the next chapter.**

 **Chapter 3: - Membership for 3**

 **Lukedonia throne room**

A while after the duo disappeared into the horizon, Lord suddenly gasped, as if remembering something suddenly.

"Lord, is something the matter?" inquired Gechutel. Rajak also looked on with a questioning look.

"I just remembered something very important….! I just sent Raskreia alone with a grown up man!" he exclaimed. Them being nobles was the only that stopped them from falling down at that instant.

"…L…Lord…" said Gechutel sadly, deadpanned. Rajak mirrored his expression.

"..L..Lord, why would that be a problem? Lady Raskreia IS accompanied by Frankenstein after all…I think he is capable enough of defending her" said Rajak.

"Hmph, I can't trust that filthy human…." Remarked Urokai.

" *sigh* well, I guess I can trust that Peacock for now, after all, he's only focused on finding Raizel, and after that Raizel will put a lid on him" said the Lord. "But Urokai, perhaps you should take it easy on Frankenstein. Your impressions on humans troubles me"

"It's not humans that bother me, Lord, just him. He's less than a human, one who'll do anything for power…..he must be related to whatever happened to Raizel-nim, when he co-"

"Urokai, that's quite enough. Frankenstein is the most loyal person to Raizel that I know and Raizel trusts him as well." Said the Lord in a cold voice. Urokai went silent after that.

Gechutel, who had a tense look on his face, inched forward, as if to say something, but didn't quite have the courage to spill it out. Lord noticed and cocked his head.

"Well? How long are you going to make me wait, what is it Gechutel? You seem to have something on your mind" he inquired.

"Lord…I'm not sure how to put this…."

"You don't need to be so tense, just tell me"

"It's about what Frankenstein said, my Lord. About how Raizel-nim and Muzaka-nim fought each other to near death. It is a well-known fact that Raizel-nim had frequent visits from the werewolf lord. But we have never heard of any of this from the werewolf clan, and also about the fact that their leader and the noblosse engaged each other in combat. Normally, they would be on our doorsteps when nobles interrupt their activities in the human world. Yet, when their Lord fought against a being like the noblesse, we hear no news from them. I feel there is more to this than we think" explained the Landegre family leader.

"Hmm…we can't be sure about that, since I doubt that the werewolves know about Raizel. As far as I know, only Muzaka knew about the Noblesse, and that too only after we told him about it. Muzaka isn't the kind of person who would share this kind of information with all of his family members. But then again, this battle with Raizel seems to be too convenient for the werewolves, especially when Muzaka started drifting from the clan's ideas regarding the humans." Gechutel remembered the last time when Muzaka spoke with the Lord, where he mentioned about his ignorance on the activities that his clan had been doing behind his back. Muzaka seemed to agree with the nobles's suggestion about not interfering with the humans but his clan didn't take it too well.

"We'll have to look into this matter in more depth…and also, what that peacock said when we first met him also bothers me" said the Lord, mostly to himself. "Hmm….what shall we do then….."

 **Fairy Tail Guild**

Upon entering, Frankenstein and Raskreia laid eyes upon Raizel. The blonde could immediately tell the condition his master was in. To any other person, he would look like any other normal, elegant man. But to the trained eyes of his servant, stood his master, very weak and worn out from his current battle. His injuries had healed, and his fatigue had vanished, but his actual state itself was very sad. He would still need to enter hibernation to atleast hope for recovery.

"Master…." Breathed the blonde and immediately knelt down in a respectful pose.

"Raise, Frankenstein" said Raizel, acknowledging the bow. But Frankenstein remained where he was.

"I'm so sorry master…..if only I had been there during your fight, you wouldn't be in such a bad state…." Said Frankenstein, in a very deep and apologetic tone. Rai however, nodded his head.

"Frankenstein…..it was my choice to enter into that battle…Muzaka had to be stopped from killing the humans, and as noblesse, that duty falls on me alone….you are not to blame" assured the noblesse. Franky remained silent, and then slowly rose up. "Yes master" he replied.

"Cadis Etrama di Raizel….I am here as per the Lord's orders to escort you to Lukedonia should you choose to return. However, if you wish to stay, that is fine by me as well. I shall accompany you whatever you choose to do" said Raskreia, announcing her presence to Raizel. It was then that he noticed her presence. Rai simply nodded.

"Master, please return with us, you definitely need to enter sleep in your current condition" requested the Blonde. Rai remained silent for a while, and then nodded his head in the negative.

"Frankenstein, these people helped me even when I was a complete stranger. They saved my life. I would not even be able to stand were it not for their kindness. As a noble and as noblesse, I cannot leave until I repay that favor. I am a being who protects the humans and yet, it was I who was being helped this time. So I would like to stay with them for a while, until I can return their kindness" said Raizel.

"Very well master….we shall stay here for a while then" he replied, with a small bow. "I _heard that their healer helped heal his wounds…..Also given that this place is rich in 'magical' energy, maybe I can also discover a way to help master. This would be a nice opportunity indeed_." Thought Frankenstein inwardly with a small curt grin, brightening up when he remembered about the magical energy of this place.

"Then I shall accompany you as well, Cadis Etrama di Raizel" said Raskreia.

Having discussed everything, the newly formed trio now headed out, little aware about the adventures that now awaited them for the days to come.

Outside, the members of fairy tail got themselves something to eat, while having a discussion.

"Mashtur, sho wo were thosh twoo?" asked Natsu, while jamming a piece of flaming charcoal into his mouth.

"Natsu, why don't you finish eating first…" suggested Lucy, sweatdropping. "Although, they were both so good looking, I haven't seen anyone that beautiful even in the weekly sorcerer's magazine…..you would think they were royalty or something"

"Yeah" agreed Mira, "but did he know about everything that happened here? He said something about being connected with that other man, Raizel."

"Yeah…..but if they mean trouble for any of us, I won't hesitate to bring them down, no matter how strong they might be or how beautiful!" declared Erza, brandishing her sword.

"That woman though…..what a looker!" said Loki in a dreamy voice. Wakaba and Macao agreed in unison.

"One of these days, I swear you're going to get your ass handed to you by one of those women you keep chasing around" said Gray deadpanned.

The doors flung open and the two people came out, now accompanied by Raizel. With all of his wounds cleaned and his clothes fixed, everyone had a good look at him and the entire guild fell silent. A shocked face was etched on everyone's faces.

"Oh my god!" squealed Lucy, blushing fiercely.

"Oh my!" exclaimed a wide eyed Mira, cupping her mouth, a similar blush adorned on her face. Even Erza's face was decorated with an unnatural blush which was only complemented by the color of her hair. Levy, who had just recovered after fainting from looking at the blood from before, fell straight out of her chair again. Cana was already very red from being too sloshed, so it was hard to tell if Raizel's presence added on to it, but she did seem to be in a trance in his presence and dropped the barrel she was currently holding. The reactions of the other female members were also very similar. None of them could believe that there could exist a man as good looking as him.

"I'm really sorry about my manners from earlier, I was in such a hurry to see master, that I forgot to introduce myself before" said the blonde, with his ever smiling face. "I'm Frankenstein, and this here is my master, Cadis Etrama di Raizel" he said, pointing towards him. "And she is…"

"…" Raskreia remained silent, all the others staring at her expecting her to say something. Frankenstein looked at her once again, signaling her to talk.

"Erga Kenesis Di Raskreia" she said simply.

"Pleased to meet you Frankenstein, but if you don't mind, could you tell us what you meant when you said Raizel was your master?" asked Makarov "Mira here told us that you said the two of you were connected, so you knew what happened to him as well. Would you mind explaining to us as well? He further inquired. Frankenstein looked at Raizel, who just gave a small nod.

" _How do I explain it to them now? The existence of nobles is secret to this world, and so is the existence of this world to the other nobles. But they saved the life of master, it would be wrong to leave without any sort of explanation, especially when they took care to protect him from further harm….."_ thought Frankenstein, and then suddenly turned to the curious members of the guild.

"Hmm…how do I start…..master and I are….humans with special abilities…not unlike mages present here. Raskreia here is no exception as well" he said. Raskreia glared at him for calling her by name and for calling her a human. She may not despise humans, but she did cherish her pride as a noble.

"Makes sense…Raizel here recovered from his injuries really quickly after all…" said Gray. Frankenstein flinched slightly when Gray called Raizel by his first name without any honorifics, when he was the most esteemed existence in all of Lukedonia.

"Yes, but unlike mages, we do not use magic, our source of powers comes from elsewhere. We are born with powers. I am an exception though, I was an ordinary human, but over the course of time, I gained abilities as well, although they're nothing to boast about. For the most part, I'm a scientist" he explained, and Raizel threw him another look. Frankenstein started sweating comically.

" _In a way, I suppose it's true…hahaha"_ laughed Frankenstein inwardly.

"I see…..that explains why none of us could sense any magic power from him before" said Erza.

"Hey if you also have abilities, do you think you could fight me?" cut in Natsu excitedly. The blonde gave a confused look.

"Fight? Me?" he asked

"Yeah! I love fighting strong opponents!" he remarked. "Aye!" agreed happy the cat.

Before the blonde could say anything, mostly surprised by the talking cat, another blonde sitting nearby pulled his ear with a vein popping in her head.

"When will you ever learn manners! Didn't he just say he was a scientist?!" scolded Lucy, pulling him away.

"I'm sorry about that, he really has no manners." said Lucy apologetically "Speaking of which, what IS a scientist?"

"Huh? You mean to tell me you don't have scientists here? That's strange…." The others nodded their heads. "Hmm, I suppose a scientist is someone who studies nature….? I conduct experiments and the like, not unlike how mages study different magics and learn about them"

"So you're a bookwork then…..man that sucks, I thought you'd be a fighter then I could have fought ya" snickered Natsu. Lucy bitch-slapped his head this time.

"Oww! Whatcha do that for!"

"That wasn't nice Natsu! And do you mean to tell me that I'm useless as well!?" Frankenstein sweatdropped.

" _These are some weird people…..and this place is a mess…..was master really staying in such a low class place?...better not to think about it, the important thing is that they saved masters life"_

"Well anyways, as I was saying, some of us can become stronger by forming a contract with another person. This contract works like a master-servant contract in that the stronger being becomes the master and the other becomes the servant. It is generally meant as a way of swearing your loyalty to another and that one person accepts you as their servant and you accept that person as your master. When the two beings consent to such a contract, we are able to communicate telepathically, and the abilities of the servant are boosted from being connected to the master who is of superior power. In my case, Raizel-nim is my master, and I am his servant."

This was followed by expressions of understanding from the guild.

"So that explains why you could tell what happened to Raizel here and how you could find him here" said Levy. Once again, upon hearing no honorifics, Frankenstein flinched again.

"Yes, so once I heard he had been badly wounded, and that he was staying here, I immediately made my way here to see him"

"I see… in that case, do you know what attacked him? From what Porlyusica, our healer told us, he got lucky because of his regenerative abilities, and was able to survive whatever attacked him. As you may already know, those claw like marks couldn't have been from some human" said Makarov.

"Yes I know, from what master told me, he said he was attacked by a…..wild wolf….…yes, a giant mystical wild wolf" said the blonde, again comically sweating, because Raizel was throwing him another look. This time however, his master's voice boomed in his head.

" _Frankenstein…"_

" _Yes master?"_

" _I find describing the werewolf lord as a 'giant mystical wild wolf' to be…disturbing"_ Frankenstein started sweating a lot more.

" _I'm sorry master, I couldn't find another way to explain it to these people without enclosing the existence of nobles and werewolves…and besides, he IS a kind of wolf so in a way, it is true right?….hahaha!"_

" ….."

"A magical wolf beast? That explains the marks then" said Elfman.

"So what do you plan on doing, young man? Do you plan to take him to your place right away? Porlyusica recommends that he stay and rest for a while before leaving. Where ARE you from anyways?" asked Makarov.

"Oh, we are not from around here, we came from outside Fiore" replied the blonde.

"What?! Outside of Fiore?!" exclaimed everyone.

"Yes, so we really aren't familiar with Fiore….I would hate to impose on you, but could introduce us to your healer? I am a scientist and I may be able to help master with his recovery. I heard she was the one who helped him recover a bit, so if its ok, we would like to visit your healer"

"Sure, that won't be a problem at all! I'll show you the way whenever you are ready!" chirped Mira.

"If that is the case, we would like to leave right away" replied the blonde.

"Hmm….why don't you stay for the night at our guild? It is really late and you could get attacked on your way. And besides, Porlyusica hates humans in the first place, so it was really difficult to even get her to look at Raizel, so probably seeking her out so late in the night isn't the best idea" suggested Makarov. Frankenstein thought for a while, and turned to Raizel and Raskreia.

"So master, what should we do?" asked the blonde.

"Let us accept their invitation. As they said, it would be rude to visit someone in the middle of the night" said Rai.

"And you, _Lady_ Raskreia? What will you do?" asked Franky, stressing on the 'lady' part.

"I shall stay with Cadis Etrama di Raizel, as instructed by Lord" she said, shuddering when Frankenstein called her 'lady'.

"Alright if you insist, we shall take refuge at your guild for the night" said Frankenstein, following which a lot of cheers erupted from the guild, mostly from the female members, and also from some of the male members such as Wakaba, Macao, and Loki, who had been eyeing Raskreia for quite a while.

"So would you like to have something to eat? Travelling from outside Fiore all day must've been exhausting" asked Mira sweetly.

"I would like to have tea" said Rai simply, and the entire vicinity fell silent, as if they all misheard him.

"P..pardon, tea?! Are you sure?" asked a bewildered Mira.

"Yes"

"Aww come on man, we could give ya a thousand different things to eat and you wanna stick with plain old tea!" mocked Natsu, patting Rai on the shoulders.

"Aye!" agreed happy.

"Is that…really bad?" asked the noblesse, raising his eyebrows a bit. Franky on the other hand, could only watch as the multitude of people around him treated him the way they did.

"Dude, really? Normally, I wouldn't listen to that flame brain's advice on anything, but I'd stick with him this time. Whether it be coincidence or consequence, you're here in Fiore. And you say you're new here. So I insist that you try some of our local dishes!" said Gray, lightly jabbing Rai. Franky looked ready to kill himself at this point. NO ONE called the Noblesse a frickin' dude! No one dammit! Well, there was Lord, but he was…enigmatic even amongst the nobles and was on equal status with the noblesse. But some regular human calling him that could not be digested by Franky.

"If you're a man, you must eat all kinds of things!" declared Elfman puffing out his chest.

"As our guest and someone who is recovering from his wounds, you need to eat properly to keep up your strength!" said Makarov, slightly patting Rai in the head.

" _Master, kill me!"_ cringed Franky inwardly.

"…..Alright…." said Rai finally.

"Trust me, you won't be disappointed. I'll get something for you guys as well" winked Mira at Rai, before speeding off to the kitchen.

"Hey there, pretty lady, I don't believe I've introduced myself" said Loki, putting a hand over Raskreia's shoulders. "I'm called Loki and I'm-" before he could get a chance to finish however, he felt his view spinning as Raskreia flipped him singlehandedly and threw him into the wall.

"Hands off! Know your place!" she glared, walking away from him.

"Dumbass had that coming" said Gray. "Still, nice throw"

"That was indeed a marvelous throw. She may make an excellent sparring partner" said Erza, going over to Raskreia. "Greetings, my name is Erza Scarlet. Let's get along well" she said, offering her hand. Raskreia stared at her silently, looking at her hand, and finally, shook it, after a nod from Raizel. "Likewise"

From nowhere, a hand slid itself up into Raizel's arm, and Cana leaned on Raizel's shoulders in a seductive manner.

"Heey, I'm Cana, why don't you accompany me for a drink or two" she said in a sleazy tone. That was it. No matter what these people had done, this was the breaking point.

"OY! HANDS OFF!" he shouted, but controlled himself enough not to release his energy.

Cana simply turned towards Franky, and made a sour face. "What's the big deal, I'm just inviting him to a drink. Now that I think about it, you're pretty handsome too! So, would YOU like to come instead?" she winked. Frankenstein wore a deadpanned expression.

"Oy Cana, stop troubling our guests already! You really should cut it down on the alcohol!" reprimanded Macao. She sulked a bit but left the two regardless and went back to downing another barrel of alcohol.

Meanwhile, the chaos in the guild had returned. Gray and Natsu were at it again, calling themselves names and obliterating whatever came on their way. Erza sat in another corner treating herself to another strawberry cake. Somehow, Elfman also got caught in the bout between Natsu and Gray, and Lucy tried all she could to separate them from the others, but obviously without success. Rai and Raskreia were watching the events with interest, but Frankenstein was trying his best not to let the chaos get the better of him.

"Sorry to keep you waiting!" chirped a voice, and along came Mira, carrying plates filled with eggs, bacon, steaks and bread. Frankenstein watched with amazement as she set everything in an elegant manner before them. The food itself smelt great.

"Thank you"

The trio sat down in a very dignified manner, wrapped a table cloth and with classy table manners, started dining.

"Wow, such good manners…" remarked Mira.

"This is really superb!" commented Frankenstein and flashed a smile. Mira blushed. Rai and Raskreia had shocked expressions as well. Slowly, they finished their meal and thanked Mira again.

Afterwards, Makarov came up to them with a concerned look.

"I would be happy to show you Porlyusica's place, but if you're going to stay there for a while, how are you going to live without any money and a place to live?" he asked.

"We haven't really thought about that. But I guess we could figure out something along the way"

"How about this; Why don't you join our guild? As guild members, you can get access to jobs or missions and earn reward money. It should help you to find a place to stay for a while. Any person can become a guild member, as long as they're mages. Since you all have special abilities, you can as well. So? Would you like to join our guild as members?" proposed the old master. Frankenstein paused for a moment. He did not want to get involved too much with this world, but at the same time, if he could stay here for an extended period of time, it would provide a great opportunity for studying a world such as this and most importantly, it would be good for his master to lead a normal life, away from his isolation.

"That sounds good. I thank you for the offer. So, what must we do to be guild members?" inquired the blonde.

"That's wonderful! Now that've you've told me, you're already guild members! I'll just ask Mira to stamp the guild mark and that's that. But you would still have to demonstrate your abilities so that you can be sent on missions that suit your abilities."

"Heeeyyy! Did you get that you guys!? These guys are going to become guild members!" announced Romero. The entire guild stopped what it was doing and crept in to observe the three. After confirmation from Mira, everyone exploded into cheers.

"Whoa! _They_ are going to be our nakama!? Sweet!" shouted a female member.

"How manly!" shouted Elfman.

"Welcome to the crew!" said Gray.

"Geehee let's get along well!" grinned Natsu.

"Hi and welcome!" greeted Lucy, grabbing Raskreia's, Rai's and Franky's hands in a handshake, bringing small smiles to Rai and Raskreia's faces.

"So, where do you want me to place the guild mark and what color?" asked Mira, holding the stamp.

"Purple, on the back of my right hand" said Frankenstein.

"…Red…." Said Rai, showing the back of his left hand.

"Black on my left shoulder" said Raskreia.

After the noise had died down, and Mira had given them their respective stamps, Makarov said "I would still need you to show us your abilities, but it is pretty late in the night, so I guess we can leave that for tomorrow. For now, you should get some rest. There are some beds there, so feel free to use them." suggested Makarov. "I'll see you tomorrow then!" Slowly, one by one, the activity died down and everyone went to bed.

The trio were standing on the roof, bathing in the moonlit night.

"Frankenstein, was it really necessary for us to join their guild?" asked Rai.

"I felt this would be the best way to avoid raising suspicions about our origin. And besides, with this, we can stay and mingle amongst the humans and learn much about this world. I think I can help you recover some of your strength by studying this place's magic, master."

"I shall trust your judgement" he said.

Raskreia was still remembering the people she had met today, staring at her hands.

"Cadis Etrama di Raizel…..is this what father saw in humans? I must admit, this was not bad at all"

"Yes" agreed Raizel. Frankenstein raised his eyes, surprised and then smiled.

 **Phew! That took a long time to write up! Anyways, this chapter was meant to introduce the characters to the FT world. The good stuff would start from the next chapter onwards. There are a few things I would like to mention. Firstly, I would strictly remove this concept of 'nakama power' in FT. I believe that one aspect of FT is bulls**t and not having it would make the series more enjoyable. Lastly, one of the main themes of this crossover would be the interactions of the socially lacking characters like Raizel and Raskreia with the lively people in FT. BTW, if you have any fanart for this crossover, do let me know, and I'll quote you in the next chapter. Updates would be once every 2 weeks. So thanks a lot for reading, and do let me know your thoughts through your reviews, it would help me with my story. Thanks a lot for reading, and I'll see you next time!**


	4. Chapter 4: - Phantom Lord

**So as promised here's this week's chapter. I'm really glad about the responses that this fic is getting, and also for the reviews/favs/follows. Thanks a lot for the support and in the future as well, don't hesitate to point out any loopholes. The reason I only update once every alternate week and not weekly is because I need to update my other fic also. Also, I WILL be fast forwarding Galuna Island arc, by which I mean that the noblesse characters won't have anything to do with it and the story will continue from phantom lord arc.**

 **Chapter 4 :- Phantom Lord**

As the first rays of the morning light illuminated the city of magnolia, the noble trio set off to demonstrate their prowess to qualify for their positions, whatever they may be, in Fairy Tail. Normally, no one would be around the guild this early, but today no one wanted to miss the chance of observing what their new fellow members would be capable of. As soon as the trio entered the guild, they were surprised by the audience their 'test' had gathered. Nobles tend to be isolated from other nobles, only meeting the other once every few years and this applied more so as the hierarchy went up. Master went up to them and greeted them still in his night gown.

"I see you're the early bird types. You all must have really made an impression on them to have called them all this early. Well, whenever you are ready, you can start" he mentioned. "Oh and Raizel doesn't have to show us anything, since his condition is very bad and besides, we know he has regenerative powers, so I guess that'll suffice. Oh and If you would like to have breakfast first, that is fine as well. But if you would like to show us right away, then that's your call"

"I would definitely like to have some of your food again, if that is ok. I must admit, it was exceptional" said Raskreia, again in a highly formal tone.

"Oh, I'm flattered that you think of it as such, but you really don't have to be so formal Raskreia" said Mira. "After all, we're soon going to be fellow members! And what about you Rai?" she winked.

"Rai?! RAI?! His name is Cadis Etrama-" repeated Franky, but was interrupted by Mira.

"Oh I know that, but it's a pain to remember such a long name, you don't mind us calling you 'Rai' do you?" said Mira. Erza, Lucy, Grey and Natsu nodded in agreement.

"You can call me however you please" he mentioned in a monotonous tone.

"Then 'Rai' it is! So, would YOU like to have something first?" she asked, and Rai nodded his head too.

"Alright, just sit tight and I'll be right back!" she chirped and stormed off to the kitchen. The others gathered around.

"Say, when you first came here Rai, you spoke to us in a foreign language, but then the next instant you were able to speak in our Language, even though you've never been here before. How is that possible?" questioned Natsu.

"That's….." said Franky, but surprisingly, his ever silent master answered for him.

"I can read the minds of people, so I am able to learn languages and also about the place I am in, its culture and so on. It is part of my abilities" he explained. The reaction was instantaneous. The sounds in the guild halls were filled with 'oohs' and 'wows' but Frankenstein looked as if Dark Spear had just proposed to him out of the blue. He couldn't BELIEVE that his master would willingly talk to humans so casually about his powers.

" _Master….!"_ He thought.

"Woah, that's awesome man!" cheered Gray.

"You're more talented than I gave you credit for, young man" remarked Makarov.

"Tell me what I'm thinking!" jumped Natsu.

"'Tis indeed a wonderful ability" said Erza.

"Wait so whose mind did you read to learn about our language?" questioned Lucy.

"Okay, I feel I need to stop you guys here. Master is indeed capable of reading minds. But he NEVER does it unless it is ABSOLUTELY necessary for him to live in a place. It is very low to invade the privacy of one's mind. Tell me, would you really be ok with someone looking into your mind, your memories? It's a shameful thing to do, unfit for a nob-…..for a person such as him. Which is why, even when he looks into the mind of someone to learn about that place, he only looks into those particular sections of that person minds and does not look into their personal memories" explained Frankenstein. "You have to understand, Master was seriously injured when he got here, and in a foreign land at that, so he had no choice but to look into one of the minds of the people here. It also tells him if those around him mean him any harm"

"That's ok, you don't have to worry. We understand the circumstances and we aren't worried that he read one of our minds. If that can save his life, then I think it's worth it. And besides, you said he won't look beyond what is required, so all's well that ends well" said Mira, who was back with their breakfast. The group was surprised that she was back so fast, enough to be listening to the entire conversation.

"Well then you three, dig in!" she said cheerfully. "We've already finished, so don't worry about us!" As usual, the trio sat down elegantly, wrapped a table cloth, with knife and fork in hand, and cutting the pieces with meticulousness.

"Why the hell are you being so stiff n formal?!" protested Natsu, with his eyes popping comically.

"This is really good! How do you make such a meal?!" wondered Frankenstein aloud. Mira blushed.

"It's not that great really, and I'll teach you any time you want!" she said.

"This is indeed extraordinary" said Raskreia, with a satisfied and shocked expression on her face. "I've never tasted something so good before"

"Wow, really? But this is just Bacon, sausages, scrambled eggs and fresh juice" said Lucy. "Just something commonly available just about everywhere"

"We've never seen these at our place" said Frankenstein, while trying out the juice and gasped as the cold orange liquid slid down his throat. "Amazing! Master, do try this fruit juice!" recommended Franky. Rai took a small sip with utmost care, and the gasped wide eyed. Soon, the trio was done and had satisfied looks on their faces.

"Thank you, that was quite delicious" said Frankenstein. "Can we start now? We would rather be on our way soon"

"Of course. I'll have Mira here show you the way." Said Makarov.

"So, what do you want us to do? Should we go out somewhere to show our abilities?" asked the blond.

"No need for that, if you have offensive abilities, just aim at some random furniture, they keep getting broken anyways, so…..otherwise, if you need us to attack and your abilities are defensive, we'll do that" suggested the master.

"Hmm…I detest having to destroy furniture and making a mess, but if it is required to join this guild, then I guess I'll have too…." said the scientist. Looking around, he found a dusty table and using the most minimal amount of energy possible, he just peered at it. In the next instant, multiple dark violet colored spikes manifested out of thin air and perforated the table, reducing it to dust, literally. The audience were at shock at first, and then applauded with cheers.

"Damn! That's awesome!" cheered Natsu.

"Aye!" agreed Happy.

"Weren't you just a scientist?!" asked Gray.

"Now THAT'S manly !" said Elfman.

"What WAS that?! It looked so much like magic!" exclaimed Erza. But unnoticed to the others, there were only two members who were confused more than awed.

" _What in the world?! It was only for a fraction of a second and a very tiny, minuscule amount, but why…. why did that energy feel so familiar?...It was so dark in nature, like my own, but even more so…...no, perhaps a lot more than I can imagine…"_ thought Mira, dazed. She shivered at the thought.

" _I suppose Mira noticed it too, his energy ie…"_ thought Makarov darkly.

"Sorry for the mess" apologized Frankie.

"That's ok, like I said, these kinds of things happen so often, that I feel uncomfortable when something _doesn't_ break in the guild" said Makarov deadpanned. "Now only Raskreia is left. So Raskreia, if you would" said Makarov, as if pointing the way.

Raskreia looked around and found a fallen table at another corner of the guild.

"HA!" she cried, pushing the air in the direction of the chair with her palm. The table flew clean off the ground, and crashed against the wall at sonic speeds, obliterating it completely. Yet again, the guild wasn't disappointed.

"Holy shit, that was even more awesome!" cried Natsu.

"You could put that shitty flame brain to shame!" commented Gray.

"What was that, Gray?!"

"I was right….you might actually make for a very interesting sparring partner!" said Erza.

"Excellent! But if you don't mind, would you like to explain the nature of your powers? It's so I can send you to the proper missions once Raizel recovers" said Makarov.

"Is it absolutely necessary?" asked Frankie.

"More than you know. I'll show you why" said Makarov and turned to face Gray and Natsu.

"Say you both, I want you both to go on the next mission together as a team. What do you say?"

"WHAT?! Go on a mission with that flame brain?! You kidding gramps?!" shouted Gray.

"I'M the one who should be asking that you shitty popsicle! You wanna piece of me?!" protested Natsu, raising his fists.

"Bring it on, ya piece of charcoal!" shouted Gray, stripping.

" _I can kinda understand why Makarov asked these two, but why the hell is this punk stripping?!"_ he thought inwardly a vein popping in his head.

"That's it! Now you're dead, you exhibitionist!" cried Natsu, slamming his fists together which released a puff of flames. Frankenstein and Raskreia raised their eyes.

"That's me talking!" shouted the ice mage and froze his hand to create an ice layer. This again caught the attention of the noble trio. They both charged forwards, but before their attacks could collide, a pair of giant arms crushed them both where they stood.

"Is this what you all call 'magic' ?" asked Raskreia curious.

"Yes, and it takes on many forms. As you saw just now, Gray's magic is creation magic. He can create ice and make many shapes out of them and use them in battle or in a tactical advantage. Natsu here, has fire elemental dragon slaying magic, taught to him by his foster dragon parent, Igneel, a flame dragon. As for me, I can change the size of my body" explained Makarov.

" _Igneel…where have I heard that name…..Igneel, Igneel…..! Flame Dragon King Igneel?!"_ recalled Frankenstein, shocked. He looked at Natsu with a surprised and confused look. " _This kid is THAT Igneel's son?! Interesting…."_ He then immediately formed the mental link with his master.

" _Master, this boy is…."_

" _I know, Frankenstein. I never thought I would meet up with the progeny of Flame Dragon King Igneel. It feels like only yesterday since we last saw him, even though it's been a few hundred years. I would have never imagined that he was a denizen of this world"_

" _This is very interesting indeed…"_ said Frankie and broke the connection.

"I see" remarked Raskreia. "Interesting"

"So, naturally, when mages go on missions, we need to make sure that the team we are sending in are compatible with each other so as to not jeopardize the mission. This also helps me to decide the kind of mission a team is allowed to go on. Which is why I need to know the nature of your powers" said Makarov.

"I understand. If that's the case, then my ability is a kind of energy manipulation I guess? Just like Gray here, I can shape and create shapes of out my energy." Explained Frankenstein.

"…..I have a few telekinetic abilities" said Raskreia.

"Ok, that would do. Thank you. Oh and from now on, you are all now official members of the guild, glad to have you at Fairy Tail! Welcome to the guild!" said Makarov cheerfully. The guild members cheered along.

"Thank you very much" replied the blond. "Now that the formalities are complete, do you think we could be on our way to meet your healer mage?" he requested.

"Sure. I'll have Mira here guide you on your way"

"Alright, we'll be off then!" he bid goodbye and Mira waved at her fellow guild mates before disappearing out of the view of the guild.

"Alright then, the rest of you get back to work" Makarov trailed off, and walked back to his room. Unbeknownst to him, Happy was tearing off a sheet from the 2nd floor of the Guild's bulletin board.

 **With Raizel and team-**

The trio walked on in the solitary, grassy path that twisted and turned in the sea of trees where Porlyusica's house lay. The sunlight was almost drowned out by the voluminous tree tops and the path ahead too by the numerous shrubs at the forest floor. Someone _really_ did not want to be found. It would be so easy to get lost in this forest, but thanks to a certain white haired beauty, they would have a different ending today. Frankenstein remembered what she told them before taking off towards Fairy Tail.

 **Flashback**

" _Just follow this path and eventually you'll reach Porlyusica's house. She….doesn't like having too many visitors, especially humans like us, so I'll be off to the guild now. And besides, I don't want to get in the way of your recovery, Raizel so I'll let Frankenstein work peacefully. But if you ever need anything from the guild, you can use this, and I'll come get you again!"_ she had said, handing in a card which bore the picture of a chibi Mira winking at them. Frankenstein raised his eyebrows, slightly concerned at the pose this picture was making.

" _What does this do?"_

" _This is a call card. You can use this card to communicate with me. This is one of Cana's magic. You remember her, don't you?"_ Frankenstein just flinched, remembering her actions from the previous night, where she tried to seduce Rai.

" _I'll take that as a 'yes'"_ she giggled. The blond pocketed it nonetheless.

 **Flashback end**

"Master…..can I ask you something?" asked Frankenstein, as if he had a deep thought going on in his mind. Raizel just turned and faced him.

"It's about that time when the kids asked you about your mind reading ability, why did you reveal your ability? Was there any specific reason?"

"…I do not know myself. It was on a whim…"

"On…on a whim, master?!"

"…..I do not know, Frankenstein" he repeated. "But for some reason, I just felt like I can tell them" he replied simply, leaving him still confused.

"We've arrived" alerted Raskreia, which also served to change the subject.

The trio beheld a most peculiar sight indeed. It looked like anything BUT a house. At first glance, it was easy to confuse the place with one of the trees growing in the forest, as the base for its construction was most likely one of the local trees. It was hollow in the middle, and there was probably a small room located inside. Stocks had been pierced in a few areas, creating openings for windows and a massive, ornate door. The land around the house was left unchanged, apart from the creation of paths and a few stairs leading to the main entrance.

"This is…a house…?" asked Frankenstein, confused. Regardless, the trio went ahead and knocked on the huge ornate door. Porlyusica opened the door and grunted in an irritable manner.

"What is it now? Don't you fairy mages ever leave me on my own for a while?!" Then, she realized her mistake after seeing the trio. Looking at Raizel, she recognized that the other two must be his acquaintances.

"Its you!" she gasped. "How are you able to stand?! I suggested you NOT leave the bed for a couple of weeks at the very least! What the hell are you doing here?!" she chided.

" _This old bat, how dare she scold master in such a manner?!"_ cursed Frankenstein, clenching his fists. But then calmed down soon enough when he made peace with the fact that she did that for his master's own good.

"Who are these other two with you? Your friends?" she asked, and again, Frankie AND Raksreia, both flinched for different reasons.

"No, that's not, we're…." and the blond gave her the same explanation that he did for the other guild members for the next half hour.

"Go away" she said coldly.

"What….?"

"Go away! I told you, I hate humans, and I sure as hell don't entertain taking on some sort of 'apprentice'. If you're really that worried about his health, let him stay here for a while and the two of you be on your way!" she said, with a vein popping in her forehead and comically swatting them away with a broom that she held on her hand. "Shoo! Shoo!"

" _You crazy old….no no, calm down Frankenstein, this is all for master. They don't know any better"_ he told himself, and slowly breathed out. Then, when he sensed her energy, a lot of things rushed to his mind at once, and then he had a sly grin on his face.

"You hate humans? Now why is that? Would that be because you aren't human yourself?" asked Frankenstein. The old healer gasped.

"What do you…"

"I told you. We have special abilities, more than you would know and I'm a scientist, so I've seen and heard about just about everything. Maybe I don't know about this world, but I do know about a certain beast. A dragon to be specific. I dunno how it came to be seen outside of this world, but why don't you cut the act before I say anything, Sky Dragon Gradeeney." He smirked. The look on Porlyusica's face was worth more than a billion jewels.

"Your silence tells me I was on spot. I don't know how or why you're in a human form, but your voice and your energy is identical to Sky Dragon Grandeeney, which is why I had no trouble finding out."

"How…?! Who ARE you people?! Did he find out as well when I first saw him?" she asked, pointing to Raizel.

"Hmm…..seeing you react this way, I suppose you aren't Grandeeney after all. I may have been mistaken, since you would have known the two of us if you were" wondered Frankenstein. "But you didn't deny it, what does that mean….? Did something happen?"

"You're not wrong when you said that I was Grandeeney, but I'm not the dragon you know. I don't know how you know about her, but you weren't that far off either with your analysis. Indeed, I am not Grandeeney, of this world ie. There exists another world, which is like a mirror image of this one called Edolas. I am the Grandeeney from that world, a human." She explained.

"Another world along with this one?!" exclaimed Frankie.

"Yes, I am the Grandeeney of that world. I have met the Sky Dragon once telepathically, but I don't recall her mentioning about humans the likes of you" she said. "So what is your relation to her?" Frankenstein sighed in relief, knowing that he didn't reveal the fact that they were nobles to the people of this world. Well, Frankenstein was still a human, but he wasn't going to tell her that.

"Let's just say that we happened to meet her once and we agreed not to talk about it afterwards" he said. "And as I told you already, I can manipulate energy, so sensing your energy was no big deal."

"You met Grandeeney?!" she asked surprised.

"Yes, but more importantly, the main reason I came to this land to help research a way to help master recover his health. Oh right, if we need to be working together, I might as well mention this to you."

"Who said we would be working together? Didn't I just mention to leave Raizel here and be on your way so that I can look after him undisturbed?" she snapped.

"And what if I told you that despite your best efforts, there is nothing you can do to help his condition improve? That there is more to his injury than meets the eye? That if you can simply lend me a hand, we MAY be able to improve his condition"

"What do you mean?" asked the old mage.

"Master…he uses his life force whenever he uses his powers" Raskreia raised her eyes surprised and Porlyusica had a shocked expression on her face.

"He drains his own life to use his powers?!" she asked.

"Yes, that's why he was in such a bad state when he came here. He was already exhausted by the attack from the 'Wolf Beast' but was also further exhausted by using up his life force in exchange for using his abilities. It has always been this way. So when I heard that magic particles called eterno in this land were available in abundance, I thought I might find a way to recover master's lost life force. And as luck would have it, you helped him regain his strength with your healing portion. Although it might not have restored his life force, it did help him recover from the damage he had suffered already. Also, whenever master uses up a significant portion of his life force and needs to recover, he enters hibernation. Usually he enters hibernation at a special chamber at our manor but when the situation calls for it, he conjures up a coffin, pitch black with gold linings"

"That's the same one where the members of the guild found him if I remember what Makarov told me" replied Porlyusica.

"Right. But this hibernation is incredibly inefficient at recovering his life force. Even if he sleeps for years, the life force master would recover would barely account for a few weeks. So, I've been searching for a way to help him. So please….." he finished, slightly lowering his head. "I would be honored if you could help me with my research. I'm a scientist, and I'm sure if you could tell me more about your work, and let me study your art, I can hope to come up with something" Porlyusica stood still for a while. She was deep in thought, and occasionally looking at Raizel and the others. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she finally looked up.

"Fine, it is my job to help anyone who's life is in danger, and if what you say is true, and if there is any chance that you can recover Raizel's spent life, then by all means, I'll help you in any way I can. But only on one condition. You may never speak of what you learn here to anyone"

"Thank you very much! Such a simple promise is nothing compared to what you have offered me. I shall of course keep my word" promised Frankie.

"Alright then, I suppose you will need to stay here for a few days won't you? I've never had any visitors for many years, but I'll make this an exception. Come on in" she said, inviting the three into her house, which was actually quite bigger than they gave credit for.

 **A few days later-**

A few days had passed since Natsu, Happy and Lucy disappeared off with the S-Class request stolen from the 2nd floor bulletin board and Erza and Gray who were sent to bring them back, had gone silent for the said days as well. Finally, on that morning, the silhouettes of 4 people and a flying cat could be seen discussing the events that transpired that day as they made their way to back to the guild.

"Now, let's get to the guild and decide your punishment" said Erza.

"I almost forgot!" cried Lucy, and Natsu mirrored her expression.

"In regard to this case, I kept thinking I could over look your actions. But it will be master who will render your verdict. I have no intention of defending you, be prepare to accept your punishment" she said calmly.

"Don't tell me we have to do THAT!" cired Happy, eyes popping comically.

"NO wait! I never want to do THAT ever again!" cried Gray.

"What the hell is THAT?!" questioned Lucy.

"Don't worry about it, I'm sure Jii-chan will be like 'Great job' when we get there" said Natsu, and Lucy wondered why he was being so optimistic.

"No, I'm sure THAT is already a given" confirmed Erza. Natsu started sweating profusely.

"NOOOOOOOOOO!ANYTHING BUT THAT!" cried Natsu, and Lucy was left hanging about what THAT was.

"Well, off we go" pointed the red haired beauty, but they were distracted by the numerous murmurs that filled their surroundings wherever they went.

"What….? Something's wrong with the guild" remarked Erza and dragged Natsu along.

"Eh?! Wh-What?!" exclaimed Lucy.

"This is….!" Staggered Gray, with a shocked expression. Natsu too had a horrifying expression on his face and started sweating slightly. The four stood speechless to their once majestic guild now a picture of hell, with multiple massive iron columns piercing it from every side possible like a pin cushion.

"OUR GUILD!" they all cried in unison.

 **A/N: - I know I promised some fights in this chapter involving the nobles, sorry about that :'( This was a lengthy chapter and wanted to make sure the introduce the crisis that was going to be the pivot point for the nobles to fight. I know you may all have several questions in this chapter, especially regarding the dragon part. All I can say is that while writing that, I had considered several scenarios, and went ahead with one that would be really interesting. I do have something planned out for that, I'm sure you'll love it. Also, regarding to that, I may introduce certain new elements that weren't there in either of the stories, but that's the point of a crossover isn't it? To try to form a link by introducing new elements in the two series. But these new additions will in no way contradict the elements already present in the two series. If you have any other questions, feel free to drop in those and I'll answer to the best of my capacity. Thanks a lot for reading, do support the story in the future as well!**


	5. Chapter 5: - We are Fairy Tail!

**So I finally got time to work on this chapter. I was down with viral fever, and also my project reached its peak, so I couldn't work on this fanfic. Anyways, thank you so much for all the reviews and follow/fav's , before I start this chapter, I'm gonna leave responses for some of the reviews which I haven't been able to reply through a PM.**

 **Ophelliia:- Thanks a lot!**

 **KoaNLaG:- Thank you so much, and I hope the previous chapters answered some of the questions you had. And regarding Raizel's powers, well…..there will be a little insight to what his deal is gonna be for the rest of the story in this chapter. Also, about how Franky and Rai know Igneel and the other dragons, I've planned something for that, as the story progresses, that plot will be revealed.**

 **Phoenyxonfyre:- Thanks a lot!**

 **Chapter 5:- We are Fairy Tail!**

The exhausted team made it to the basement of the now destroyed guild, to find all the members gathered around in what little space could be found there. The others had similar expressions, some looking sad and others with rage.

"Master, what the hell happened here?!" asked Gray flustered.

"We were completely done in….." replied Mira with a helpless expression. The surrounding members shouted and cursed about Phantom Lord attacking their guild.

"Yo welcome back!" greeted the master in a surprisingly happy expression.

"Jii-chan, this isn't your happy hour!" shouted Natsu.

"Oh yeah, almost forgot, How dare you go out on a S class quest without permission?" he scolded.

"WHAT?!" screamed Gray.

"That's what concerns you?!" asked Natsu.

"Here's your punishment!" he continued, ignoring them both and extending hands, slapped them lightly on their shoulders, face and on the butt for Lucy with puppy eyes, which earned him a reprimanding look from Mira.

"MASTER DO YOU UNDERSTAND OUR CURRENT SITUATION?!" raged the red haired beauty.

"THEY FREAKIN' WRECKED OUR GUILD!" said the pink haired dragon slayer, veins popping in his head.

"Well calm down, this is nothing to make a fuss about" he answered, waving his hands.

"What?!" exclaimed Lucy and Gray.

"Phantom right? This is as far as they will go, dunno why they even bothered to attack an empty guild" he said, downing a glass of beer.

"Empty guild?" inquired Erza.

"Yeah, they attacked in the middle of the night, so no one was hurt" explained the white haired beauty.

"Yeah, so leave them be, it's not worth picking a fight against someone who relies on cheap tactics like attacking during the middle of the night" he said dismissively.

"I DON'T CARE, I WONT FEEL RIGHT UNLESS I SMASH THEM TO DUST!" declared Natsu.

"The discussion is over. We'll take on job requests here until the 1st floor is fixed" he ordered sternly.

"Job requests?! Have you gone nuts, old man?!"

"Don't hit my butt, old man!" protested Lucy.

"Master, don't push me too far…" said Mira deadpanned.

"Well anyways, I'm gonna take a leak" he said, and sped off.

"How can you remain so calm?!" asked Gray, shaking.

"Master…..he's just as mad as we are, yet he is held back by the rules of the magic council…two guilds are prohibited to engage each other in a fight" explained Mira.

"They're the ones who attacked first!" protested Natsu.

"That's of no consequence, the rules are clear. If this is how master feels about it, we have to accept it" said Erza bitterly leaving bad tastes in the mouths of the others.

"So what happened to Frankenstein, Raizel and Raskreia?" asked Erza.

"Those three? No clue, we didn't get any news from Frankenstein ever since they stay put at Porlyusica's place. Since they didn't leave her place, they should be okay" said Mira.

"Yeah…it would've been pretty bad if they had got caught in this mess, I don't think they're weak, but I doubt they would be alright if they faced off against the ones who did this to the guild" said Natsu, scratching his head.

* * *

 **Sometime later, Lucy's house**

"Would you remind me again why you guys are all in my house?" asked Lucy sweatdropping.

"Obviously because the guild was destroyed and they might know where we live as well, it would really suck if they decided to pick on us like they did earlier in the middle of the night" explained Gray.

"We should stick together lest something terrible happens again" said Erza. "And besides, you're of marriageable age, I wouldn't feel right about leaving you alone with Gray and Natsu"

"You're really just doing whatever you please aren't you?" she asked again deadpanned.

"Anyways, you guys are really sweaty, why don't the three of us take a bath like the old days" suggested the red haired knight. The said two started backing away slowly, but not before Erza caught them both.

"What kind of relationship do you guys even have?!" screamed Lucy.

After a nice long relaxing shower, the residents changed to their PJ's and got ready to call it a day. However, Lucy was still confused about the whole thing.

"Say, why do you think they attacked us in the first place?"

"Who knows? They've always rubbed us off the wrong way, but this is the first time they attacked us directly" said Erza.

"I think Jii-chan is just scared" said Natsu.

"I don't think that, he IS one of the 10 holy saints after all" said Gray dismissively.

"The 10 holy saints?! What's that?" asked the blonde.

"Oh that? The 10 holy saints are the 10 most powerful mages in the entire continent as decided by the magic council. Master Makarov is one amongst them. But Master Jose, the master of Phantom Lord is also one of the 10 great saints. If we were to battle, our battle potency would be balanced. The master wished to avoid such a situation." explained Erza.

"Not just that, they also have 4 mages called the element 4, who are our S-Class mage equivalents. Then, their other greatest battle asset is the Iron Dragon Slayer Gajeel and probably the culprit who attacked the guild" added Gray.

"What did you say?! Iron Dragon Slayer?! So Natsu's not the only one?! So does he like eat Iron and stuff?!" exclaimed Lucy. Natsu just snorted on hearing that.

* * *

 **Phantom Lord guild**

An ominous figure could be seen eating what seemed to be plates and bolts made of metal, when another approached him.

"Hey man, nice work wrecking their guild! I bet their spirit must be crushed, serves them right!" he smirked, patting the figure on his shoulders. He was greeted by an iron rod extending from the stranger's hand that blasted him into the wall.

"What did I tell you about disturbing me when I'm eating, scumbag" he rasped, getting up. "Who cares about those Fairy assholes, we're the stronger guild" he cursed, wiping his mouth.

"The wheels have been set in motion. Excellent job, Gajeel-san" said another figure.

"You're too lenient master, those rat bastards won't be lured out with just that, so I left them another present!" he smirked wildly.

"Just make sure you don't kill the 'important' one" the figure grinned back.

"Gihihihih!"

* * *

 **Magnolia city, Southern Entrance Park**

A lot of people were gathered around the large tree in the southern entrance park, murmuring to themselves and grim expressions on their faces. Several were pointing fingers.

"Coming through! I'm from the guild!" said Erza, pushing aside everyone. The rest followed. What they saw left them shaking and speechless. Jet, Droy and Levy were beaten to near death, bloodied and bruised all over their bodies and crucified to the tree with iron bindings and nails. Also, their bodies were marked with the insignia of Phantom Lord's stamp over their Fairy Tail stamp marks.

"Levy-chan!" cried Lucy, bursting to tears.

"Jet! Droy!" shouted Gray. Erza was shaking in her boots. Natsu was gritting his teeth as hard as he could the whole time.

 _Clack clack clack_

The silhouette of the master of fairy tail could be seen approaching the strung up figures, looking at them for a brief moment, and then burying his face in his hands, seemingly crying.

"Wrecking our shoddy bar I could bear with, but no parent can remain still after watching the blood of their children spilt" he said in a low voice.

" **THIS MEANS WAR!** " roared the figure, breaking his cane murderously.

* * *

 **Magnolia hospital**

The shadow gear trio were immediately unstrung from their restraints and rushed to the nearest hospital. Lucy stayed back to watch over them while the others rode for the town of oak in the northern part of Fiore, where the guild of Phantom Lord lay.

"This is just too cruel….." she mumbled to herself, on the verge of tears again, thinking of the time she had known Levy. "I cannot forgive them….."

* * *

 **Somewhere in the forests of magnolia**

Frankenstein and group bid their farewells to Porlyusica a couple of days back and were finally on their way back to Fairy Tail. Frankenstein was in a cheerful mood, since he couldn't have asked for better results as a result of working with Porlyusica. Sure, he was initially hesitant to work alongside with some human, and one that treated all so irritably all the time. But with time and patience, he had achieved the result he wanted so badly. Looking ahead, he saw Raskreia sticking much closer to his master than before, something that he still couldn't believe. Only a few days back and even before they all came to this world, Raskreia would only come to his master's mansion only if the Lord commanded it, and would leave without saying a word, yet now, she was walking alongside him, watching out for anything that might attack them in the forest. During their stay, they found that the forest was riddled with strong magical creatures and although it was something Frankenstein could take care of blindfolded, they still presented a real threat to his master who could barely bring out his powers at all during their initial few days. So Frankenstein would always be there to fend off the fiends. His mind went back to the first night of the trio's stay at Porlyusica's place, when he mentioned about how his master uses up his life force in exchange for his powers.

* * *

 **Flashback**

 _The cool night breeze ruffled the blond scientist's hair, as he sat thinking about the days to come. His master was being examined by Porlyusica inside, and kept Frankenstein waiting outside until she finished. Soft footsteps could be heard crunching through the dried leaves of the forest floor, and Frankenstein turned to look at who this visitor might be. Raskreia's face slowly faded into existence, lit by the dull moonlight._

" _Oh it's you" acknowledged Frankenstein lazily._

" _Frankenstein, I have something I want to ask"_

" _Oh, what's this? Suddenly feel like calling me by my name?" remarked the blond._

" _Just answer my question…what did you mean when you said that Raizel uses up his life force every time he uses his powers? Is he not a noble? Why does it hurt him to use his powers? Why does the Lord of the nobles treat him like his equal? My father may behave ludicrously sometimes, but he never shows the kind of attitude he does with the other nobles. I have never worried about it till now, thinking there might be a reason for Lord's behavior. But hearing you mention about how he uses up his life force, I can't help but wonder." She said, speaking for longer than she had ever spoken in her entire long life as a noble._

" _I see…so that's what's bothering you…..you ARE the heiress of the Lord, and it is only right that you know as well, if the clan leaders also know. Are you sure? This is a long story" replied Frankenstein._

" _I have all the time to listen"_

" _I see…hmm, where do I start? Ok, let me ask you a question then. Who do you think is the most special being amongst the nobles?" he inquired._

" _That's obvious. It's the Lord" came the quick reply._

" _That's where you're wrong. There are TWO beings that hold special status amongst the nobles. One is the Lord, who symbolizes authority and is the ruler of the nobles. The other remains in the shadows. Only the clan leaders, Lord and myself know about it. If the Lord rules over the nobles, then the one who protects the nobles with his power is the 'Noblesse'."_

" _The noblesse?"_

" _Yes. If the Lord symbolizes authority, then the noblesse symbolizes power. Two sides of the same coin, if you will. The title of Lord is given to the noble that leads and rules over the nobility, but the title of the strongest noble that protects the nobles is given to the Noblesse and master…IS the noblesse!" he explained. There was a stunned silence that was only matched by the silence of the forest breeze rustling through the forest floor. She was taking in everything he said wide eyed, thinking back to all those times she had seen the clan leaders talk about Raizel so respectfully, even more than the Lord._

" _I see. So his status is the same as a Lord….incredible…no wonder the other family leaders pay him so much respect. But why is he not known outside to the other nobles then? If he really is in the same position of Lord, then why does he not make an appearance outside of that mansion of his?"_

" _That's because master chose to stay in the shadows, even though there is nobody who stops him from living as he likes. He isolated himself, away from everybody's eyes, and only left the mansion when Lord calls him. In fact, the Lord used to send you over to the house just so that he could try to give him some company, or to try to get him out of his house from what I've heard."_

" _Why though? If he is the same as a Lord, why doesn't he behave like one? Why does he have to isolate himself like that?" she inquired._

" _Do you really think that powerful clan leaders of the nobility, would show someone so much respect that they dare not do anything against his wishes? Its not about respect, its fear. Master has the power and authority to erase any noble he deems may be harmful to humans and other nobility. Why would powerful nobles require protection? They are the superior race, comparable to the werewolves. Why would such a race require protection from the noblesse? The noblesse's true role is to protect nobles from within, if any noble was deemed to be a threat to the existence of the others the noblesse would step in and finish them off."_

" _But…..that's impossible! Why would nobles turn on each other?!" she asked wide eyed._

" _Tell me…do you really think that nobles are all high and mighty? The 'superior race'? No. There are nobles who have made contracts with humans for their own greed. I've come across many such nobles during my time before meeting master. That is why the noblesse exists. Now do you see? His existence is one of fear and power. Deep down, they fear him. That's why he chose to stay alone. He would stay all by himself…..looking out of that one window, never leaving the house for decades." He said sadly._

" _He lives all alone without meeting anyone?" she asked "What about you? Don't you stay with him?"_

" _I only met him recently. He has existed long before I. Can you imagine living all alone, without any contact with the outside world for centuries?"_

" _He lives such a life?!"_

" _That's right. All because he is the noblesse. No one stops him from living as he likes, but he chooses to live the solitary life. Which is why, I am thankful to your father for whatever effort he took in making master's life a bit better"_

" _That's…..I'm sorry…..I had no clue…." She said, looking down._

" _That's not all either. Unlike most noble leaders, he does not have a soul weapon. His own royal blood IS like his soul weapon. His power is so mighty; he needs to keep it sealed. Naturally his power is greater than even the Lord's, but it comes with a heavy price. Every time he uses his power, his life force decreases. Which is what I meant earlier. I don't know whether his power comes from using up his vitality or whether he lowers his lifespan due to the strain of his powers. Either ways, the end result is the same. I don't know how much life he had left in him when I met him, but the most damaging one was his recent battle with his friend Muzaka, the werewolf lord. After that, you know the story. He landed here, and I rushed to this place alongside you in hopes of finding some way to restore his life force. Normally he can only restore his life force by tiny amounts after hibernating for centuries. But the damage he has received now is irreparable. He'll almost certainly go to eternal sleep if he uses his powers one more time." He finished._

" _I can't believe that someone's life could be so cursed…" she muttered sympathetically and walked off without saying a word._

* * *

 **Flashback end**

And ever since then, Raskreia's attitude towards Raizel changed drastically. Her tone was much more softer and more respectful towards Raizel, and she always made sure that whenever Frankenstein had to go out to get some items required by Porlyusica Raizel was always protected. Frankenstein smiled to himself, knowing that his master had new company apart from himself. Perhaps when they return to Lukedonia, this would be a nice change for him. Perhaps coming here was one of the best things that happened to them after all. Frankenstein soon caught up to the two and they all made their way to the guild.

* * *

 **After a while**

The blond stood speechless after looking at the multiple iron columns embedded into the guild like a pin cushion.

"What the hell happened here?!" Raizel and Raskreia also had serious expressions.

"Let's go inside and find out" suggested Raskreia. On making their way to the basement, they saw some of the guild furniture still there, but for the most part, it was empty.

"No one's here…what happened?! Blast!" cursed the blond. The three then rushed outside and saw that one of the townsfolk was waiting for them.

"Um….excuse me, are you guys from Fairy Tail?" he asked meekly.

"Yes, can you tell me what happened here?"

"You don't know? The guild phantom lord attacked the guild in the middle of the night and strung up three of the members in the southern park after beating them to near death. They've been taken to the magnolia hospital"

"They were attacked?!" exclaimed Franky. "Where is this hospital?"

"Right that way, around the eastern corner of the city center"

"Frankenstein, let's go" said Rai. Franky nodded and the three sped away after Franky mouthed a 'thanks' to the citizen.

* * *

 **Town of Oak, Phantom Lord guild**

The entire place was filled with laughter and cheers, the members filling themselves up with booze and meat.

Suddenly, the front door was blasted open and flaming fists sent the nearby two members flying into the wall. The rest of the wall was then obliterated to a million pieces by the remaining army of angry fairies.

" **WE ARE FAIRY TAIL!** " came the war declaration from the short master.

Immediately, the members began attacking, slicing, crushing, burning whatever came in their vicinity.

"Wha-"

"It's those fairy guys!"

"Damn! They're taking out our guys left and right!"

"They're no small fry, what should we do?!"

Erza, Natsu, Gray and Elfman led the assault, Erza with her Hertz Kreuz armor and sword, slashed and punched few guild members. Gray created a sheet of ice in front of him, causing those in front of him to slip and crash into one another. Elfman transformed his right arm into a spiky giant arm and began bludgeoning everyone. Natsu flared up his fists and pretty much did the same. But nothing compared to the damage the master was dishing out. Whenever someone came close to attacking one of the fairy tail members, the master would enlarge his fists and downright crush them into the ground.

"Monster!" cried one of the fallen Phantom lord members.

"You picked a fight with this monster's children, don't think for a second that you'll be saved by human laws!" he thundered.

"JOSE! WHERE ARE YOU?! SHOW YOURSELF!" screamed Makarov, charging through the crowd.

"That's Erza aka Titania, Gildarts, Laxus and Mistogun aren't joining the spree, they're underestimating us….gihihihihigigihigihih! I didn't expect master Jose's plan to work so well! Wreck yourselves out, ya fairy scum!" smirked Gajeel.

"Erza, you take charge! Iim gonna go up ahead to take care of Jose!" ordered the old master before speeding off towards the first floor.

"Take care master!"

"Hehehe, now that the pain in the ass is gone, I don't have to hold back anymore!" grinned the iron dragon slayer, and jumped into the fray. He extended his arms into iron clubs and bashed two of the fairy members out cold, but also taking out some of his own.

"What power!"

"He took out his own men….how unmanly!" shouted Elfman, and charged right in. Gajeel simply sidestepped and morphed his arm into a spiked club, and beat him down. Elfman screamed in pain, bleeding.

"Bastard! You'll pay for that! Come on, me and you, Dragon vs Dragon!" roared Natsu, and spewed fiery embers all over Gajeel. The latter simply ran through them head first and punched the pink head squarely in the face. Natsu recoiled and used the ground to balance himself. Charging up his fists, he dashed to deliver a fiery blow to Gajeel's torso, and missed him by an inch. But he used the momentum to turn around and delivered a kick to his face. The iron dragon slayer was sent flying, but he simply changed his feet into iron spikes and stuck to the ceiling.

"That all ya got, Salamander?" taunted the iron dragon slayer.

"That was just a friendly hello, from one dragon to the next" replied Natsu. The whole guild then started shaking apart.

"What's that, an earthquake?"

"This is gonna get ugly" mentioned Gray.

"This is master makarov's 'fury'…..a giant's fury, no one can stop it" threatened Erza.

"As long as we have him, we wont lose!" declared Elfman.

"Hello there Makarov, long time no see" smirked the shadowy figure.

"I'm not here to talk!" he shouted, and punched the figure, but his fists went right through. "An image!"

"A battle amongst two of the 10 saints would only cause unnatural consequences, I'm only here for a rational victory" he said, and raised his hands, and the figure of Lucy tied up materialized in front of him.

"L….Lucy?! Why?!" stammered Makarov. Jose then pulled a knife, and proceeded to stab her.

"NOOO!"

Before he could notice, a gigantic figure appeared before him, holding his palms in a weird pose.

"Wh…what the?! I didn't even sense him!"

"So….So…..So…..SORROWFUL!" said the figure, engulfing Makarov in a ball of light and sending him crashing to the floor, all the while crying vigorously.

"Ho Ho Ho….there's no way we'd kill Lucy-sama, not yet at least!" said Jose, picking her up.

" _What's this, I cant use my powers!_ "

The fighting below stopped as the figure of the master of Fairy Tail came crashing down to the ground, beaten and bloodied after crashing through the walls with no magic resistance in his body. The effect was instantaneous. Natsu began shaking and Erza was already on the verge of tears. Makarov tried crawling back up but in vain.

"M..Ma..Master..!" cired Erza.

"Ma…magic….m..my magic….!" Choked Makarov, struggling to get the words out.

"Hehe, seems the fun's already over" remarked Gajeel.

"What's going on, I don't sense any magic power from master!" cried Gray.

"Impossible…..how can our master be defeated?!" said Max.

"What the hell happened upstairs?!" questioned Cana.

"Get them! Their battle strength has decreased by half!" cried one random phantom lord member, and that was more than enough for them to charge at the fairies.

"Haha, they're falling like rats now!"

" _Its not just our battle strength, but our morale has also been shattered…..retreat is the only option"_ thought Erza, and shouted out the order to the rest.

"Retreat! Retreat! Take master and let's retreat!" she pointed "Back to the guild!"

"What?!" shouted Gray.

"No way!" added Elfman.

"I can still fight!" said Alzack, picking himself up.

"No, we can't fight master Jose without our master! Let's retreat!" shouted Erza again.

"Oh no you're not! You're not running away!" growled Gajeel and jumped to the entrance and blocked it. The remaining Phantom lord members followed suit and barricaded the entrance.

"Shit!"

"Heh, bring it on, even without master, I'll kick your ass!" challenged Natsu, charging forwards. Then, one of the Phantom 4, Aria joined up with Gajeel.

"That's one of the phantom 4! Damn! Master's loss is already bad but this is….."

Before she could finish her sentence, there was a huge explosion and the front of the guild was completely annihilated, sending the members who were blocking the entrance through multiple walls. Aria just turned to air and then avoided the damage, and Gajeel planted himself to the floor, doing the same.

"Few days and the entire guild looks like hell, and three people are hanging on to their life be a hair's breath…you bastards better prepare for the worst beating of your worthless lives!" thundered a voice, and the dust parted to reveal the pissed off face of the handsome blond scientist, Raizel and Raskreia with deathly looks on their face. The members of Fairy Tail gasped.

"!"

"Its you guys! What are you doing here?!" asked Mira, who was in the sidelines all this time due to her current inability to fight.

"Rai…" said Natsu.

"So….which of you was responsible for destroying the guild?!...Heh it doesn't matter, I'm gonna …" said Frankenstein, but not before Raizel entered his mind and reminded him about something.

" _Frankenstein….."_

" _*gulp* yes master?"_

" _I hope you didn't forget that I have not given you permission to break your seal" _

"… _Yes master…...Of course I remember, why would I forget…hahahah" he laughed to himself, sweatdropping._

"Frankenstein, get out of here, we cant fight now, they even took down master!" she warned, pointing to the almost unconscious master who was taking heavy breaths.

"What happened to him?!"

"We don't know, somehow his magic power seems to have been stolen….It must be that Aria guy who did it!" said Gray.

"Anyways, these guys are too much to handle in our current state, only that iron dragon bastard might have been fine, but now one of the phantom 4 has also shown up, the same one who reduced master to such a state, so you guys should just cheese it and retreat and leave it to us!" suggested Elfman.

"Hahaha…..that's right, just retreat like the cowards you are! And if you still haven't figured out who was it that destroyed that barn of yours and nailed those other 3, well…you're looking at your's truly!" he smirked, taking a small bow. "And Aria here WAS the one who took down that pathetic old man! Go running like the-" before Gajeel could finish, a violet fast flying object planted itself into Gajeel's shoulders, going through it, even with his iron armor. Gajeel's gasped, and then flinched before he knelt down, stinging pain at his shoulder base.

"The fuck was that?!" he cursed.

"Gosh, you talk too much, I'm sorry, sometimes, my hands just move on their own, really, it wasn't in purpose" smirked Franky. "And I had to pass the time by taking out the others!" he finished and much to everyone's surprise, all phantom lord members had been put down by purple spikes to their feet. They were on all fours and were rolling about from the stinging pain.

"Whoa when did he….?!" Exclaimed Erza, wide eyed.

"Badass! He took all them out in one shot!" commented Gray.

"Cool!" Said Natsu, with a look of admiration.

"Now THAT'S manly!" said Elfman, punching the air. Cana just looked at him with drooling eyes.

"Get up you punk…..I'm hardly done with you here!" thundered the blond.

 **Damn this is probably the longest chapter yet! I guess I was too excited myself to finally write this part of the fanfic! In the true style of Noblesse, I wanted to have the RK group appear in the last second. The next chapter is gonna be even more epic, I promise. Once again, thank you so much for reading, and I'll try to get back to my biweekly release of this fanfic, so don't forget to follow/favorite this fanfic if you haven't already to get the latest updates. I'll see ya next time!**


	6. Chapter 6: - Heartfilia

**Whew, I finally decided to work on this chapter. I reckon it's been about a month since my last update, again I did try to update it earlier, but my workload was just too insane to allow me to write this one. I did write a small one shot story crossover between Rosario + Vampire and Castlevania, do check it out if you follow the series. Also, if you want to make any artwork for this fanfic, feel free to tell me, and I'll mention your works here and in the wiki pages of both noblesse and fairy tail.**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: - Heartfilia**

"Get up you punk…..I'm hardly done with you here!" growled the crazed scientist.

"Hah…" spat Gajeel, picking himself up from the dirt, and with some effort, extracting the purple spike out of his shoulders. "Ha…ha…..HAHAHAHHHAHAHA!" burst out the punk dragon slayer maniacally.

"And just what's so funny?" questioned the blond.

"It's so sorrowful…..Lucy heartfillia is no longer here!" declared Aria of the phantom 4 in a teary manner.

"What?!" snarled Franky. The other fairy tail members gasped.

"Indeed! You're just wasting time here!" said Gajeel, whilst laughing.

"Frankenstein….this looks bad, master's condition deteriorating fast!"mentioned Mira frantically.

"Don't worry…..this won't take more than a second" said Frankenstein with an evil grin.

"Frankenstein" called out the noblesse.

"Yes master?" inquired the scientist, turning back.

"We still have to find Lucy. Makarov's condition is also bad. It would be better if you took him to safety" he suggested.

"But master, you don't expect me to leave them after what they've done?!" protested Franky, gritting his teeth.

"I'm not asking you to run away. But there are more important things to do. I shall go in search of Lucy" Assured Raizel and turned to Raskreia.

"Raskreia…..can you help the members of Fairy Tail here?" he requested. The noble lady raised her eyes in surprise, and turned away with a frown.

"O…fine, if you insist" she said in a small voice, a small blush on her face.

"Frankenstein…..I trust you will get Makarov safely" said Raizel, turning to leave. The noblesse's butler replied with a courteous bow.

"Not so fast!" screamed Gajeel, charging forwards, and turning his hand into a sword and aiming it a Raizel's back. That's when it happened, in a movement faster than any human eye could capture, the female noble was already holding Gajeel's sword-arm between her fingers, before it could reach its intended target.

" _So fast!"_ thought Erza. " _I couldn't see it at all…"_

"What are you all waiting for? Go back to the guild" she said in an emotionless voice. Gajeel was struggling to break free of her grip.

"Huh? Back to the guild?!" asked one member.

"But we came here to fight!" reasoned Natsu, smashing his fists.

"And besides, do you really think you can take them all down?!" asked Mira.

"Hmph. You should worry about your condition more than mine. And besides" said the raven-haired beauty. " trash like them aren't even worth my time"

"What was that?!" spat the iron dragon slayer.

"You really shouldn't talk like that missy" smirked the air elemental of phantom 4.

"I don't doubt your skills, Raskreia, but facing an entire guild alone might be too much even for you" advised Erza.

"…It seems you won't believe me until you see for yourself" sighed the noble. The rest of the phantom lord members regained their composure after Frankenstein's attack. They picked up their fallen weapons and started their advance towards their enemy.

"Rats!" cursed Gray. "They're back on their feet already?!"

"It matters not! A real man doesn't back down no matter how tough the going gets!" said Elfman, transforming his right arm. Raskreia said nothing, and calmly picked up Erza's fallen sword from the ground. The red-haired warrior wondered what she was planning.

"You have a good weapon, Erza Scarlet" said the noble, appraising the sword. The latter just watched confused.

(A/N:- You know, personally this is where I would turn on "Kenshin's battle theme" from the anime rurouni kenshin ;) ;) )

"Let her have it!" shouted one of the nearest phantom members, and the rest followed suit. Raskreia simply flipped her hair with her free hand and threw Gajeel whom she had been holding till now. He went crashing through a couple of walls and didn't emerge. A blade came swinging at her torso and the noble beauty simply side stepped and knocked him out with a blow to the back. Next, 4 other spells came her way, cast by 2 females and 2 male members. Wasting no time, she countered them all at the same time with blinding speed and gracefully moved about, knocking them all one after the other. She briefly appeared for a second, before disappearing again and taking out another 5-6 phantoms in a flash. The continuous clash and clangs could be heard, as her sword proceeded to incapacitate person after person, with Raskreia appearing every now and then. Only a few seconds later, all the bodies dropped with soft 'thuds', save for Aria and Gajeel, who was still pinned to the ground from her previous attack.

"Your move" she challenged, pointing her sword towards the wind mage of Phantom, who was sweating bullets.

"M..Mon…Monster!" lashed out Aria, slowly backing away. " _Damn…..retreat….retreat!"_ he thought frantically, slowly edging towards where Gajeel was.

"Holy hot damn!" gasped Grey.

"In just a few seconds….!"

" _Those movements are too fast to be human…..just what IS she?!"_ thought Erza wide eyed.

"Looks like she might give Erza a run for her money…." Commented Cana.

"Cool! She's really strong!" jumped Natsu in excitement at the thought of fighting her.

"Was our presence really needed here…." Asked Alzack, sweatdropping.

"You can say that again…." Added Bisca.

"Grrr…you might have won this round, but this is far from over! I swear it!" he growled, and dissolved into mist and carried Gajeel and himself, flying away farther and farther into the horizon till they were completely out of view.

"This isn't over yet, they still have 3 other members and Master Jose…..I'm having a bad feeling about this" said Titania.

"Yeah….and there's master too, let's head back to the guild…..I really hope Frankenstein and Rai are ok too" said the white haired beauty.

* * *

 **Meanwhile, Porlyusica's house**

"What brings you here, Frankenstein?" asked the old healer.

"He was hit with a magic draining attack. He's barely hanging on by a thread. The guild is in smithereens, so I can't treat him there. Which is why I'm here" explained the blond. The old mage then moved closer and lay the old master onto a straw bed, wrapping him in some blankets. Makarov was breathing heavily and was struck with a high fever. She examined him and grabbed the attention of the nearby scientist.

"He was hit with a magic called 'Drain'. It's an air elemental magic. It drains the victim of all of their magic at once and the higher the magic capacity of the individual, the more this technique hurts…I'm really surprised he isn't dead" she shuddered.

"Is there a way to heal him?" asked the blond.

"Yes. Drain works by dispersing the magic of the victim into the air, until it evaporates. But by the time you got here, it seems to have completely disappeared…there's no hope…." She said tearfully. "He may have only minutes left to live…"

Frankenstein gritted his teeth, angry that he couldn't deliver 'punishment' himself. Then it struck him, something that happened when they were staying back at Porlyusica's place a few days back.

"Why don't you use 'that'? It can absorb the surrounding energy and nurture the user's powers….it should be able to restore his entire magic" mentioned Frankenstein.

"You mean that blood red stone that you gave me?" she asked, gazing up. She fumbled around her shelves, opened the pages of a book hidden behind a trapdoor hidden behind a tree trunk and took out a tiny stone-sized fragment of a blood red colored, clear looking stone. She recollected what the scientist had said about this stone when she was healing Rai.

* * *

 **Flashback**

" _What's this?" asked the old mage curiously._

" _This…is a blood stone. It has the power to absorb energy from its surroundings, be it from the atmosphere, the soil, the earth, or even people". Porlyusica gulped. "Where I come from, we have no 'Etherno' or magic particles in the air, so when the stone is used, it absorbs the life force of people around it and gives it to the person using it. But the side effect of this is that it slowly kills the people it absorbs energy from and makes the user go mad and gives them an unquenchable thirst for power. What I have here is a small piece of a whole. As gratitude for helping master, I'll lend you a small fragment." He finished, and broke off a small sliver from his portion. "Use it wisely, for this will no doubt improve your skills and knowledge by leaps and bounds. But at the same time…..do keep in mind not to fall prey to its powers…"_

* * *

 **Flashback End**

"Yes. Do not underestimate its powers, for many have fallen prey to its alluring properties. The blood stone I gave is a tiny piece of the whole of which I had a small part of, hence it should not have any negative effects on Makarov's psyche. Plus, combining it with a lacrima should be able to weed out any of its negative effects. This way, instead of a person directly using the blood stone, they can use it through a lacrima and not fall prey to its powers." Explained the scientist.

"Isn't that the same way that you helped heal Raizel?" reminded the old mage.

"Yes, but in master's case, he is impervious to the effects of the blood stone. But any normal human or even mages can be pulled into the control of the blood stone's allure. Which is why I had asked you to never take it out in broad daylight. But now there's no time so I trust you will take it up within yourself to make sure it is used only as much as it needs to be" cautioned the blond.

"Then why not stay and do it yourself? If it's such a dangerous object, then isn't it better that someone who is familiar with it use it?" argued the old lady.

"I would, and that is what my master wishes as well, but at the same time, master isn't exactly good with directions" remarked the scientist deadpanned, and at the same time with sympathy. "I need to help him out" he said. "Plus, I don't see why you need my help, didn't I tell you everything about the blood stone and how to use it as an exchange for helping master?"

"That may be true, but I'd rather prefer NOT to loiter around such objects. You humans and your artefacts are such trouble, more than they are worth…hmph!" she scowled. "But this is a special exception. Consider this as a last 'thank you' for the knowledge you shared with me. I hate to be indebted to you humans…"

"…*sigh*….whatever floats your boat, fine. I'll take my leave then" he said and exited the way he came. Porlyusica watched as the blond scientist disappeared with a swift movement and her thoughts went back to her current patient.

"….Really now…." She sighed "You fool….Why do you put yourself through that kind of ordeal?...You really should be thankful to that lot, I couldn't imagine what would've happened had this not been there…" she remarked almost tearfully, twirling the stone in her hands.

* * *

 **Phantom Lord Mage Guild Headquarters, Prisoner's cell**

"Why did you attack us?!" demanded Lucy, after being confined by the leader of Phantom Lord, Jose Pola.

"Us?" he asked "You mean Fairy Tail? That was just an extra!" he smirked menacingly. "Our true objective was to capture as certain individual, and that person just happened to be a part of FT. So it was two birds with one stone. Who else could it be? Daughter of the Heartphilia conglomerate, Lucy Heartphilia -sama.."

"How do you know about that?" asked the blonde celestial mage in a manner of denial.

"How you ask? Why, it WAS your father who requested us to capture you after all…" explained the evil master with a gleeful expression. Lucy could do nothing but stare in horror as images of her father came flooding into her mind.

"N..No….Lies….why would he?!"

"It's normal for a father to search for his daughter is she went missing, isn't it?"

"No, he would never bother with that! I won't go back! I'll NEVER return to that place!" she declared rebelliously.

"My My, what a troublesome lady…" said Jose, waving his hand.

"Release me at once!" demanded the female captive.

"I can't do that" he replied simply, and Lucy frowned. She hadn't expected the advance to have worked, but she had to try nonetheless.

"But I need to use the bathroom" she pleaded.

"Bah! Such a clichéd excuse" he rebuked.

"But I really need one now!" she insisted.

"Fine then, use that bucket over there" pointed out the master of phantom lord, surprising Lucy. But she wasn't done yet. She just sighed and proceed to perform the deed.

"YOU'RE REALLY GONNA DO IT!" screamed the captor in disbelief. He waited and watched for a moment, still hoping that this was just a trick, but she didn't appear to stop anytime soon.

"Tch, fine! What a shameless lady!" he spat and dropped his guard, looking the other way. Lucy smirked and delivered a kick right in the nuts, sending the now sniveling Jose into a screaming frenzy.

"Heh, not so bad for a clichéd trick after all!" she remarked and moved in towards the window of her confinement. But her victory was short lived, as she gasped and beheld the sight before her; a vast landscape of the entire town of Oak, her footing atleast 40 ft from the ground.

"A..ah!" she breathed.

"H..How dare you do that to me….!" Snarled Jose, slowly trodding towards Lucy. The image of her father once again flashed before her.

"Now, come to me! It's time for your punishment!" thundered the evil mage, raising a hand towards her. The celestial mage simply closed her eyes, and let herself fall backwards.

"WHAAAAAA!" screamed Jose in shock.

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" screamed a falling celestial mage. " _Damn, I've really done it now!"_ she screamed to herself wildly. A shadow of a figure sped up the wall, grabbed the falling blonde by kicking off the wall, and did a flip, and gracefully landed on the floor with a light tap. Lucy kept her eyes tightly closed, shaking. When she no longer felt the same wind pressure and acceleration from the fall, she slowly opened her eyes and noticed a blond-haired scientist wearing a sour look in his face, his clear blue eyes looking anywhere but into her own brown ones. She looked away in guilt. The crazed scientist gave one heavy sigh.

"Really now, what were you thinking" he said wearily, still not looking at her, rubbing his forehead.

"I..I'm sorry" she sobbed. Then he turned towards her, and that's when it hit him. Now that he got a good look at her face, a flood of images came flashing to his mind.

"Lucy…tell me….what is your full name?" he asked seriously. The sobbing teen looked up surprised, and then turned away.

"W..What's that got to do with…" she asked tearfully.

"Just answer!" insisted the blond. She remained silent for a long time, and slowly muttered the words.

"Heartphilia…..Lucy Heartphilia" she said. The blond's eyes went as wide as tennis balls. His mind was transported to a memory of a young woman with a shapely hourglass figure. She tied her lengthy blonde hair back in a ponytail and had side-swept bangs in front, with two strands of hair draped down the sides of her head. The mage also was dressed in elegant robes with a high-collared cloak. She wore a keyhole blouse and a long dress. The woman had a confident smirk on her face, and pointed towards him.

" _You….are my quest"_ she declared _._

"Frankenstein ,what's wrong" asked his master, and his mind snapped back to reality. The scientist regained his composure and shook his head. " _I see…..so she's …."_

"I'm so sorry….." continued a sobbing Lucy " It's all my fault….but I still want to stay at the guild, I love Fairy Tail!" she said.

"Of course you can stay, what's the matter? What happened?" questioned Frankenstein crouching down. But the former refused any answer. Frankenstein clenched his hands and threw a dark look at the top of the tower.

"That's it….I'm going to crush him" he thundered, " **Answer my call,-** "

"Frankenstein!" cautioned the noblesse sharply. Frankenstein restrained himself.

"I'll ask again. What is the matter?" he questioned, a bit more forcefully this time.

"Master, she's…" but answered no more, turning away. Rai didn't probe any further, but mentally noted it.

"Frankenstein, is it not better if she is taken to the guild for now? Clearly she blames herself for something that is not her fault and she only wishes to be with her comrades." Reasoned the black haired noble.

"…Yes master. I shall escort her back to the guild then" he remarked with a small bow. Raizel nodded, had one last look at the tower himself and the blond carried the still sobbing teen over his shoulder single handedly and departed. Far above the grounds, a still struggling mage was attempting to recover from the damage dealt to his tenders.

" **How dare you do this to me….you little bitch!** " he roared, shaking his fists. " **You'll pay!** "

* * *

 **Fairy tail guild, sometime later**

There was chatter and murmurs from the basement of the guild that was now filled with many injured and fatigued guild members. Some were getting their injuries healed, while complaining about having to retreat without getting the chance to put up a fight. But none were disappointed after the show Raskreia put up and obliterated the entire guild in an instant. After that fight, they were all in awe of her sword skills, and even surmised that she surpassed Erza in terms of swordsmanship. Frankenstein had done all he could to console the celestial mage on their way to the guild to stop her from breaking into tears again. The said mage now sat quietly in a corner with a glum expression, aghast at the events that transpired from phantom's attack.

"Their headquarters is here. If we attack them here with long distance magic, their southern defenses will be down" said Warren in a calculated tone.

"We'll carry as many lacrima bombs as needed and bring some powerful magic sheets for those using holder type magic" suggested Wakaba.

"What's up? Still worried?" asked Gray concerned. The blonde mage remained silent. Ever since she had told the guild her entire story about her father and phantom lord, she remained silent and didn't make a single noise .

"It's just that…..I'm sorry….because of me…." She broke down, shaking.

"But isn't it natural that daughters from rich families be targeted? If you're a man, it's your duty to protect them" said Elfman.

"Dumbass don't tell things like that" scolded Gray.

"But why did you hide it from us till now?" asked a curious blue cat.

"That wasn't my intention. But the truth is, I ran away from home, so I didn't feel like talking about it. His daughter's been missing for a year and now he suddenly wants me back? Papa's so horrible!" she said defiantly. "Then again, all of this happened because I ran away from home…Because of my selfish actions, everyone was hurt…..it'll be fine if I go back home right?"

"Do you really think that way?" asked Frankenstein.

"Huh?"

"Nothing will go back to the way it was if you went back home. Your father will continue to be the way he is, and you would only cause more hurt to the people who you mean so much to. They would rather see themselves hurt than having to see a comrade of theirs suffer. Isnt that the way of Fairy Tail?" he finished.

"Yeah!"

"The bookwork speaks the truth!" said another voice from behind, greatly annoying the blond.

"We'll never let anyone take away our nakama!" said Natsu.

"In my opinion, the lot of you are better off in this dirty bar causing a mess and living without a single care in the world. No matter what happens, you'll always be Lucy of Fairy Tail to them" assured the enigmatic blond.

Lucy was almost on the verge of tears, but controlled herself and dashed forwards and hugged the scientist. "Thank you!" she said gratefully. The blond was taken aback a bit, and then gave an assuring smile and riffled her hair. Loki watched the scene silently and Cana was occupied trying to find Mistogun.

"Argh, no good! I can't find that guy!" she scowled in irritation. "If their target is Lucy, they'll come back to attack again. Many are injured, we'll be in a tough spot" noticed Cana, tensed. Mira contacted the lightning mage through a communication lacrima.

"Master is seriously wounded, you're our only hope…" begged the white haired beauty.

"Haaah?"

"Please come back….its an emergency" pleaded Mira.

"Ha ha ha ha ha! Serve's that shitty geezer right! It doesn't concern me, so go ahead and take care of it yourself" he said sadistically. Frankenstein, who had been listening, got up from his place.

"LAXUS!" threatened Cana.

"Isnt that how it is? That geezer started this fight, why do we have to clean up his mess?" demanded the lightning mage coldly.

"Laxus, our comrade is being targeted" said Mira.

"Huh? Comrade? Oh you mean that new big boobed recruit huh?" he said. The blond scientist couldn't take it any longer, and inched nearer to the lacrima.

"Tell her if she becomes my woman, I'll help her out. And ask that old geezer to relinquish his master's position to me while you're at it" he demanded darkly. That was it. Before any reactions could be observed from anyone in the vicinity, the lacrima exploded violently. All the heads turned towards the blond scientist. There was a dark aura surrounding Frankenstein.

"F..Frankenstein…" stammered Mira.

" **To hell with this! I'll take care of the alone!** " he snarled.

"I'm going to fight too" remarked the white haired beauty tearfully, after Laxus's recent attitude.

"No you cant!" said Cana frantically. "no matter how much you may want to help, you'll only be a burden to the others in your current state….even though you were a former S class mage" Mira could say nothing in defense.

"Frankenstein, I forbid you to go out on your own." The scientist only stopped, not even looking towards his master.

"You are a part of this guild, what would happen to their morale if you left them now? Compose yourself" said the noblesse in a commanding voice. The crazed blond let out a deep breath and finally turned towards his master. He slowly the knelt in front of him.

"I'm sorry to have worried you master…." He said apologetically.

"We are now members of their guild, and we shall tackle this problem together like a guild" he stated. Murmurs of agreement came throughout the guild.

"Yes master" came the acknowledgement.

Somewhere else in the guild, Erza relieved herself from the stressful events of that day by allowing a welcoming gush of cold water washing over her in the guild's makeshift shower. She let the cold liquid wash away her pain and fatigue of the battle, as she let her thoughts ponder.

" _Master's absence…as well as Mistogun's and Laxus's…..so many injured and unable to fight…..it's impossible to win now…"_ she thought gloomily and fell back against the wall. She remembered the words of her master, who was very much like her father, his declaration to end things with Jose. She punched the wall in frustration.

"Damn! If only I had been there, I could've avoided this! Pathetic!" However, her thoughts were interrupted by a loud boom that came from the outside. She quickly wrapped on her towel and made her way to the basement.

"Wha…?!"

"What's that noise!"

"It's coming from the outside!" alerted Wakaba. Natsu and Lucy turned in that direction with anticipation. A breathtaking sight awaited their eyes. Making its way towards them was a machine-like contraption of proportions unlike any of them had ever seen. It was the phantom lord guild, _walking_ towards them supported by 6 legs like a robot.

"The guild is walking….." remarked Alzack incredulously.

"Is it …..phantom?" asked Macao, as if not believing the words coming out of his mouth.

"I..I never th..thought thet'd attack us like this…" said Bisca fearfully. The shocked faces on everyone's faces was pretty evident.

"They're **insane…..** " snapped Frankenstein. Raizel glared at the figure standing at the guild control room.

"Such insolence" muttered Raskreia.

* * *

 **Phantom lord guild headquarters**

"Prepare the magical convergent cannon "Jupiter" now" ordered the master of phantom lord. A giant cannon assembled itself into firing position.

"Obliterate" came the simple command. The cannon began glowing brightly.

* * *

 **Fairy Tail guild**

The large mobile guildhouse ceased its forward movement a moment later and allowed itself to rest in the waters just offshore from the Fairy Tail guildhall. The raw size of it was imposing enough ,and that was without considering the wizards that it housed among whom were likely the Element 4 and the Iron Dragon Slayer. Needless to say, it was obvious that Fiore's strongest guild was currently outgunned in the eyes of the most.

" **Attention members of Fairy Tail, this is Jose Porla addressing you from within the headquarters of our guild".** Jose's voice bommed out from the speakers that the guild now supposedly possessed.

" _So….he's the one that attacked these guys_ " thought Frankenstein, scowling heavily upon hearing the man's name the first time. He would forget it in all likelihood, because that person would quickly regret the day he was born.

" **You members of Fairy Tail currently have something that we desire, or, rather someone. Surrender Lucy Heartfilia at once and I promise your lives will be spared. Refuse, and …well see if ouy can grasp the symbolism** " Jose stated, pointing towards the glowing Jupiter cannon.

"It's the magical convergent cannon Jupiter" remarked Mira fearfully, her pupils shaking as she spoke.

For someone to even consider the use of such a weapon was inconceivable. This wasn't just something that went against the Magic Council. It was a crime that may have gotten Phantom's master a death sentence.

" **Refuse and you will be destroyed!** " he thundered again.

"Are you nuts?!" asked Natsu, shaking his fists.

"What kind of a man would betray his own comrades?!" asked Elfman.

"Yeah!" Azlak shouted in agreement. One by one, the members of Fairy Tail formed a protective barricade in front of Lucy. She almost collapsed on her knees, but she managed to stop herself and remain standing. However, she was unable to stop the large stream of tears that fell from her eyes. Despite all that happened, she was still accepted, and such a thought warmed her heart unlike anything before.

" **Foolish…utterly foolish Fairy Tail! Now…..you perish!** " he sneered angrily.

A large collection of bright white light began to gather at the tip of the cannon's barrel. It continued to grow, collecting more and more power with each passing millisecond.

"Heh, the slimeball just says whatever he wants" smirked Frankenstein, and calmly made his way over towards the front.

Most everyone in FT stared at the blond-haired scientist with an expression of absolute shock. They could see that he was currently facing the enemy guild, with a confident smirk, but many just didn't believe it.

"What are you doing, Frankenstein?! You can't take a hit from that cannon, a mere human would get obliterated!" Mira shouted worriedly, though he didn't budge an inch.

"Just stay put and let me handle this!" he assured, though his words did little to assure his fellow guild members behind him.

" _Frankenstein…..I know not your abilities….but….what are you trying to accomplish? Even if you're a gifted human, that's no better than a mage is…..this is just…._ " Erza thought, being paralyzed by the boldness of the man's actions. It was comforting to see him throw away all caution in an attempt to save his comrades, as it was something that she would do. However, just because it was something she would do in a heartbeat didn't mean it was not astronomically stupid.

" **Well now…lookie here…this is interesting indeed….however I'm afraid that your friend is correct. You don't stand a chance against our magical cannon** " Jose said.

"Shut the hell up and fire that already then you coward" he taunted. A vein popped in the head of the master of phantom lord.

" **Fine then, die pathetic worm!** " he said, and the energy reached its critical point, following which it shot forwards with a massive shock wave. It was so massive that the water around it scattered in its path and the wind whipped outwards at high speeds. Frankenstein only smiled to himself.

"Frankenstein! Stop this at once! You gain nothing by sacrificing your life!" pleaded Erza. But her pleas went on deaf ears. The scientist never took his eyes off the incoming projectile, for if he was too careless, it would scatter and hit the others behind him. Slowly raising his arm, he positioned it facing directly the projectile. The next instant, there was a titanic explosion expelling so much dust and debris. The heartbeats of the members of FT were beating hard in anticipation. The dust slowly cleared to reveal a scene that would be burned into their brains for time immemorial.

* * *

 **Phantom Lord Guild Headquarters**

"M..Master Jose, that man….he…it cant…." One of the controllers exclaimed wildly.

"I..impossible….what in earthland is he…this is ludicrous…..is he…even human?!" uttered Jose in disbelief, sweat dripping from his brow.

* * *

 **Fairy Tail guild**

Frankenstein stood unimpressed, with a single outstretched hand and a few scratched on his clothes that told everyone the story they needed to know.

"No fucking way…!He blocked it with one hand" trailed off gray with a shocked expression on his face.

" _He did it….he actually did it…_!" Mira thought, not even capable of using words due to the shock , cupping her hands over her mouth.

"How did he…..with just one hand!" said Erza in an awestruck tone.

"Frankenstein…..! You…! This!" exclaimed Cana.

"How is this possible?! The Jupiter cannon is capable of obliterating entire buildings! To block it with just one hand and not even get a scratch…..what a man!" commented Elfman.

"Is that truly it?" asked Frankenstein, bored. "The way it looked, I figured I might have a challenge" he said, breaking the monotony. "Alright then, my turn!" he declared. Suddenly, the entire vicinity was hit with a dark, dense energy, the likes of which none of them had come close to sensing.

"What the?!" exclaimed Cana, almost gagging from the bitter and dark nature of the energy.

" _This energy! It's so dark….just like that time when he first came….it feels so much like mine….but even more malicious than I could ever..!_ " thought Mira, cowering. Natsu, Gray and Elfman too shuddered from the force they were hit with.

" _Frankenstein….. just what are you…_ " thought Erza.

The blond scientist began charging a condensed sphere of dark energy. "Try this" he said, and with a throwing motion, shot the sphere towards the towering cannon. The sphere shot outwards in the form of a beam, steadily speeding towards the core of the cannon, killing and decaying all vegetation that came across its path. The beam penetrated the entire mobile guild, causing the whole cannon to explode and crash down, along with a good portion of the guild itself which now caught fire. Shortly afterwards, the smoke and fire did clear, revealing the massive form that remained before them.

* * *

 **Phantom Lord Headquarters**

"Status report!" demanded Jose frantically.

"The Jupiter cannon is too damaged to fire again" said one controller.

"CURSES! DAMN! JUST WHAT THE HELL IS HE?!" Raged the master, smashing the screen in front of him.

"Additionally, it appears that Totomaru of the Element 4 was caught in the blast radius and is being escorted to the medical ward" continued the controller.

"Great,…..just great…." Jose sighed, slumping back in his chair.

* * *

 **Fairy Tail Guild**

There was utter silence after everyone witnessed the aftermath of Frankenstein's attack, the mere shock muting their mouths.

"The Jupiter cannon…he actually destroyed it….and the guild has been damaged considerably too….." said Erza simply, still trying to comprehend what happened.

The said scientist made his way towards his guild mates. "That should ease things up" he said, dusting off his hands.

* * *

 **Finally, I finished this one. I had so much work, I never thought I'll see the end of it. So here's an extra long chapter to keep you going. I was really planning to end the phantom lord arc here, but that would be super long. The war will continue to the next chapter. Sorry for the wait, and thanks a lot for your support, it means a great deal to me. Again, if you have anything to say out or suggest, feel free to leave them in the reviews, and I'll answer them in the next chapter. Hopefully, I can release it within the week or two.**


	7. Chapter 7: - Phantom Downfall

**This chapter will conclude the phantom lord arc. Enjoy.**

 **Guys , there's some SERIOUS issue with the alert system, so none of you are getting notifications when I post a chapter or update it. Do check in every week or so, and you'll know if I've posted a new chapter or not. I really hope they fix it soon.**

 **Responses to reviews**

 **Saru: Well, your answer lies in this chapter. You'll like it**

 **Terra: Wait till they can see what Rai can do**

 **ChunkyFunkyMunky: Actually, Franky is more than capable enough to block Jupiter cannon even in a sealed state. If you go back to the chapter in Noblesse where he is 'kidnapped' by Aris and Yuri, after revealing his true colors, Franky blocks an attack with no effort from Yuri which is capable of destroying entire buildings in one shot, which is very much like the Jupiter cannon. Franky's powers were sealed that time. So that's how I knew he could do it.**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: - Phantom Downfall**

Frankenstein made his way towards his guild mates. "That should ease things up" he said, dusting off his hands. The blank and shocked looks of the members around him surprised him, seeing as how they were all looking at him as if he was some rare ultra high class treasure.

"Um..is there something on my face?" he asked uncertainly. A hailstorm of thunderous cheers erupted around him, everyone jabbing and slapping him in the shoulders. There were even two pairs of hands that were trying its best to grab him and thrown him in the air, but their effort was futile, for the blond decided not to give in to their 'request'.

" **Don't you think this is a little too early to celebrate?** " boomed a voice from the distant rubbles of the Phantom Guild. The undamaged portion of the guild transformed itself into a giant mechanoid robot, but it's left arm was missing and damaged from Frankenstein's attack. " **As long as we still have this, your end is near, Fairy Tail!** " The remaining arm started tracing a circle out of thin air with pure magical energy, scribbling runes inside said circle.

"What in the world?!" cried Loki.

"That thing is a _guild?!"_ asked Bisca incredulously.

"Those runes…..he's using the forbidden magic, Abyss Break!" exclaimed Mira frantically.

"What?! Abyss Break?! IS he insane! That's a forbidden spell that unleashes a dark energy beam with enough power to obliterate everything up till Cardia Cathedral!" said Azlack frantically.

"You never learn, do you?" questioned Frankenstein, a smirk on his face. "But I will not be the one to put your lot out of your misery. After all, this chapter would end in less than 1000 words if I wished it and there would be no point in calling this 'Noblesse's Fairy Tail' "

"Huh? Chapter? And what about Fairy Tail?" asked Natsu confused.

"Ah, never mind. Sometimes I get influenced by a higher power" he said, leaving the members even more confused. Even Rai was looking at Frankenstein with a confused look, at the mention of the name of 'Noblesse'.

"Well anyways, If I may ask, HOW is a machine like that drawing runes and preparing for firing magic?" continued the blond.

"Now that you mention it, it is strange. Abyss Break is a spell that needs the presence of the 4 basic elements; Fire, Water, Earth and Air. Magic energies of these 4 types are required to activate them. It must be powered by the Phantom 4. At the speed with which it is inscribing the runes, I would say we have about 15 minutes" Explained Mira.

"I suppose that makes sense. That guy who disabled Master Makarov must be 'air' type to use the magic called void. But we can't be sure of the other 3 and where their locations are right now" said Erza.

"Um, actually, the people who kidnapped me were two of the phantom 4, one used water type magic and the other used Earth type magic" mentioned the celestial mage, surprising everyone.

"I see. So that settles it. The phantom 4 are the ones behind this spell. I sensed a presence at the core of the Jupiter Cannon, and that energy vanished with my attack. It would be safe to presume that one of the 4 was guarding the Jupiter Cannon. They must have anticipated that someone would be there to destroy the core, possibly someone with high firepower, like Natsu. So the fire element user of the Phantom 4 must've been at the cannon core to counter Natsu's flames. That leaves the other 3 remaining in the guild. Gray, you deal with the one that uses 'Water'. With your ice abilities and shape manipulation, you should be able to counter the enemy's attacks. As for the Earth element user, Elfman would be the best match. Your beast takeovers are the best chance out of everyone present here. As for the air user, any person who uses magic as their primary ability would be doomed. Holder type magic where the user's magic energy isn't directly used is the most effective. He was also someone capable enough to take down Makarov. For this task, Erza would be the optimum fighter. Your ability is focused on augmenting your abilities by your use of various armors and weapons. Switch to a speed type armor and focus all your magic power into your weapons. Do NOT use any magic to control your swords, instead wield them yourself. This should make it easier for you to counter his void ability even if it leaves you completely defenseless against magical attacks" he finished, leaving everyone with stunned silence and gaping mouths.

" **Are you done ignoring me? Perhaps** _ **this**_ **will get you to take this more seriously!** " his voice boomed, and hundreds of hooded figures materialized in the horizon, slowly becoming bigger and bigger.

"Those are shades, Master Jose's magic! He can create emotionless shadow fiends that act out his orders, against such large numbers, we would be sitting ducks" explained Cana.

"Tch, not to worry, that goofball can try as many tricks as he wants. For starters, you lot should really be going about on your way to that machine. As for the rest, regroup and intercept the shades. Raskreia will also be supporting you, and she is more than capable of handling this. I shall go and face Jose." The blond said and sped off. Erza, Natsu, Gray and Elfman looked at each other still recollecting the things Frankenstein had instructed them and nodded their heads in agreement and they too followed the scientist closely behind.

* * *

 **Lukedonia Throne Room**

The blond leader of the nobles rested his tired head against his fists, overlooking his subjects gathered there today. Although Gejutel always told him off for being so casual, he could never bring himself to think of them as his subjects, only like family. Her said nothing for a while, a streamline of thoughts racing in his head. It was perhaps the fact that his daughter had just gone along with two grown up men, or it was perhaps the fact that some of the clan leaders were exceedingly absent since the news that Raizel had been found in Fiore. He was also disturbed by the fact that Frankenstein or Raskreia both hadn't contacted Lukedonia informing them of Raizel's condition. Several days had already passed, and the Lord wondered whether the duo had found Raizel at all. Perhaps the noblesse's lost sense of direction had rubbed off on his butler after staying with him for so long. The long-haired blond breathed a heavy sigh.

"Lord, what's the matter? It is unusual for you to look so troubled" asked a concerned Rayga.

"I agree. You have been looking melancholy ever since Frankenstein departed to find Raizel-nim" added Gejutel. Incidentally, a certain 6 family leaders were currently as well, which only added to the Lord's predicament.

"Lord, whatever your ordeal is, please let us help you too! As a clan leader, it is my duty to help the Lord with his troubles!" shouted Krasis Blerster, the current leader of the Blerster clan.

"You..You don't have to be so stiff, Krasis…" said the Lord sweatdropping. "Well anyways, its nothing major that you guys have to worry about it, just that neither that peacock nor my daughter have contacted me ever since they left, I wonder if they're lost trying to find Raizel, although he DID say where he was…."

"I see nothing wrong about worrying about it, Lord. Like you said, it has been quite some time since Frankenstein left. We should have definitely heard something from them. If I may suggest something, why not send one of us to investigate? Once we learn of Raizel-nim's condition, we can report back to Lukedonia" suggested the leader of the Loyard clan.

"Ah yes of course! Why didn't I think of that earlier!" chimed the blond leader of the nobles.

"Lord, let me, Krasis Blerster have the honor of assisting you in finding the whereabouts of the noblesse! I shall accomplish the task even if my life were to fall in jeopardy!" he cried out loyally.

"Ca…Calm down" said the Lord, again sweatdropping. " Although I appreciate your fervor, I think it would be better suited for…" before he could nominate anyone, the Lord was interrupted by a messenger.

"Lord, forgive me for the intrusion, but I have a very important message. A member of the werewolf clan requests an audience with you" he delivered. The nearby noble leaders wondered curiously.

"Alright, it's about time I heard something from them. Let him in" commanded the Lord. A cloaked figure entered the sanctum, and needless to say the Lord felt apologetic towards the woman that entered. She had long, rusty red hair and eyes. She wore a black and gold outfit and knee-high boots. She also wore a white mantle characteristic to the werewolves. The woman had a desperate look on her face.

"My my, seems I owe you an apology. I didn't realize the werewolves had such a female warrior as you. I assumed it was Maduke" said the blond, scratching his head.

"Greetings to the Lord of the nobles" said the red head with a curt bow.

"So, who are you? A representative of the werewolves?" asked Gejutel.

"My name is Garda. I am someone who served Lord Muzaka for as long as I lived. I have come here seeking your assistance" she said. The noble leaders raised their eyes. The Lord remarked a slight 'Oh?'.

"I have been searching for Lord Muzaka for 3 years now, ever since he left the clan. I have heard news of a mighty battle that took place in which Lord Muzaka was one of the fighters. I am aware that Lord Muzaka has visited Lukedonia many times in the past and he was also a friend of the Noblesse. I have come here in hopes of finding clues that might lead me to Muzaka-nim. I request you to provide me with any information you may have" she explained in a tone of desperation. There was a lot of information this woman gave, which shocked the clan leaders.

"Did you say that Muzaka-nim has defected from the werewolf clan for the past 3 years?!" inquired the leader of the Landegre clan.

"Yes. As you are aware, a lot of the members from my clan disagreed with his ideologies regarding the humans. If I recall correctly, Muzaka-nim himself must have met the Lord of the nobles regarding this very issue. 3 years ago, the tension between Muzaka-nim and the other clan members reached its breaking point, and that is when he chose to defect. I have chosen to side with Muzaka-nim on this matter, but am unable to find him still." She replied.

"Hmm….this is a serious issue indeed. Maduke has kept this fact hidden this past 3 years, even though he has been meeting us till now. And considering the previous fact that he also hid his clan's involvement with the human villages from Muzaka-nim, it strikes me that the werewolves are planning something" deduced the intelligent leader of the Eleneor clan. "But tell me this, young lady. If you were aware of the plans Maduke made for his clan, and if you are loyal to Muzaka-nim the most, why leave him in the dark?"

"The clan does not trust me due to my loyalty to Lord Muzaka. I always came to know when the deed was done and it was too late for Muzaka-nim to do anything. It would not achieve anything for him to know. It was him that told me about the Noblesse. He would often go out to meet up with him. So I knew this would be the best place to find information about his disappearance" said Garda with a sad tone.

"Youre not wrong there. Muzaka often used to visit Raizel at his mansion. I was truly happy for him when he had finally gotten someone he could call his friend…..it really is unfortunate what happened to him" remarked the Lord sadly. "And it seems your clan still has trouble trusting you. The battle in which Muzaka was involved was one where he and Raizel fought to near death. Muzaka's whereabouts are currently unknown even to us, and Raizel was a hair's breath away from entering eternal sleep. The two were so close…it troubles me when I wonder what could've happened between the two….I haven't heard anything from Raizel as well, and the two I sent to find him haven't said a word either". This new information shocked the red headed female werewolf warrior.

"What?! That's impossible! Muzaka-nim really trusted and believed in the noblesse! He ALWAYS spoke of him so highly, even more so than his own clan! He even went out of his way to leave the clan just because of something the noblesse said! It makes no sense that he would try to kill someone so close to him!" she shrieked at the top of her lungs, and gasped for breath. The nobles went silent hearing her protests. Observing the looks of the noble's faces, Garda composed herself.

"Please, I only ask that you help me find him" she breathed.

"And why should we trust you, young lady? The involvement of the werewolves who always attacked the humans, and the ignorance of Muzaka-nim on the matter, and the mysterious events that led to him and Raizel-nim to fight to near death….the beginning of all this lies with the werewolves. We nobles never choose to willingly interfere with anyone until the existence of the humans is threatened. And more often than not, it has always been the werewolves that have caused problems and now with Muzaka-nim out of the way, Maduke who seems to be perpetrator of all these incidents has a free reign. You give me no reason to believe in you" said the leader of the Eleneor clan.

"Hey, don't be so direct" said the Lord. He gave out another sigh and turned to the red haired warrior.

"I still cant help you, simply because we don't know what happened to Muzaka. We do know that a great surge of energy was detected near the ancient ruins east of here. Maybe you could try to pry for some clues there?" suggested the Lord.

"Oh I see! I shall leave immediately then. I thank you for your help, Lord of the nobles" she gave another bow, and departed from their adobe.

"Lord, why did you choose to help her? For all we know, she could be Maduke's escort" questioned the leader of the Mergas clan.

"Right now, Maduke is in no position to do anything against us. You might say that with Raizel's absence, Maduke might seize this opportunity to attack Lukedonia. But, remember that their side has lost their werewolf lord as well. The situation is still in a stalemate. We should be more worried about Raizel and getting him back here safely. I don't see any harm telling her something that even Maduke knows and she, a member of his clan doesn't" explained the enigmatic Lord.

"Oh Lord, you are truly wise!" cried out Krasis patriotically, beating his chest in pride. The lord had pretty much nothing to say at this point and simply wore a dumbfounded expression.

"Right, anyways, getting back to the matter at hand, Rayga, why don't you go to where Frankenstein and my daughter went and investigate things? Who knows, you might even find the three of them together" commanded the Lord.

"But Lord, didn't you mention that only someone of your descent or Raizel-nim or the Lord of the werewolves can open the portal?" asked Gejutel.

"I'm well aware of that. But thanks to a certain peacock, I happen to have something that might help you" remarked the Lord, and pulled out a small vial with a dark red liquid. The clan leaders watched deadpanned.

"Lord is that…?"

"Yeah. Remember when Frankenstein first came here and I offered him my blood for his experiments? Well, too bad he didn't take it then, but if you keep this on you, you should be able to get access to Earthland" said the blond leader. "Well, I did say that only those who possess my blood or Raizel himself can enter the barrier, but with this you certainly do 'possess' my blood don't you?" chuckled the Lord. The clan leaders sighed and sweatdropped and watched deadpanned at the same time.

* * *

 **Fairy Tail guild ruins**

Chaos ensued as shade soldiers were doing a neat job of keeping the fairies busy in their tracks. Loki charged his fists with his regulus magic and dispatched two shades nearby. The shades upon damage faded into black smoke, not even leaving their cloaks behind. Cana created a circle of cards around her, and flung them whenever something got close. The cards whizzed past the 'faces' of the faceless ghouls, flying around like paper airplanes. Azlack and Bisca displayed an admirable show of teamwork, with Azlack handling the short ranged attacks with his magical handguns and Bisca taking out ghouls with her expert marksmanship. Max was sending flocks of the robed fiends with his sand magic. Everyone once in a while, a shade would get behind him, and either Cana or Bisca covered for him.

"Watch out, Max! These things don't feel any remorse or regret, or any sadness over their lost comrades! We cant allow scum like these to take over the guild!" called out Cana, shredding 3-4 ghouls with her cards.

"Yeah no kidding" retorted Max. But the most awesome sight to behold was Raskreia. In another side of the battlefield, multitude of ghouls all swarmed in on her, and she single handedly intercepted them all, not even giving them a chance to approach her. With her graceful swings, she would take out at least half a dozen of shades. Mira, who was currently in Lucy's form was watching from the sidelines with Raizel after safely escorting the real Lucy somewhere in the basement of the guild. She was all but disappointed. She had never seen ever Erza display so much skill in handling a sword. The speed with which she read her opponent's moves, her reaction time, her strokes, all of it seemed inhuman, yet beautiful. At that moment, a few shades closed in on the two. Raizel narrowed his eyes, and almost raised his hands to respond, but the Mira moved in front of Raizel, and countered three sword blows but not without getting a few scratches. The noblesse observed wide eyed, his hands still slightly raised.

"Rai, you alright?" she inquired. "Don't worry, I'll keep you from harm" she assured with a smile. Raizel stood speechless, and then smiled to himself.

"I never thought the day would come when I would be the one who was protected instead" he muttered to himself.

"Huh?" came the confused reply from Mira. Suddenly, she was hit with an enormous energy, one that was stronger still than Frankenstein's but lacked the same malice. This power was authoritative, heavy and pressurizing. But it gave her some sort of warmth, a soothing assurance that things would be fine. She also noticed that Rai's earing now had a bright red diamond like stone in the middle that was glowing along with his ruby red eyes. A huge hoard of shade soldiers advanced towards the pair.

" _Oh damn…!_ " she thought worriedly, instinctively covering her face.

" _ **Kneel**_ "

The entire battlefield went silent, all eyes transfixed on the individual who now stood with an unmistakable aura of authority. For even though he spoke but one word, the authority behind it was so unmistakable; that even though the noblesse spoke to the incoming shades, the rest of the members of Fairy Tail felt that they should kneel in front of his absolute command. Yet, the same could not be said for the shades, for the battlefield looked like a scene from a painting, the twilight illuminating the thousands of shade soldiers visible till the eye could see, kneeling where they stood. With their hooded faces facing the ground in sheer defeat, Cadis Etrama Di Raizel stood supreme, his ruby red eyes only complemented by the setting sun. Mira's eyes were frozen in sheer surprise and shock.

" _Is this really…Rai?!"_ she thought shocked, cupping her hands.

" _Mind control? I cant believe he was able to subjugate such large numbers…."_ Noted Raskreia mentally. Normally, small fry like these were hardly worth her time, and she imagined incapacitating each by groups would be the best option. She couldn't control such large numbers herself, and doubted whether any of the clan leaders could do so either. " _He really is as strong as father"_

"Hey now…..wasn't he the guy who was almost dead when we found him…?" stammered Max sweating. The words of Porlyusica rung in their heads.

"….. _He probably just got lucky against whatever he faced. I doubt he's a seasonal fighter….."_

Raizel stepped forwards, nobody moving an inch. He went near the closest shade, which was still eating the dust in defeat.

" _ **Slay thyself**_ "

As if in a trance, every single fiend simply evaporated into thin air in a huge cloud of evil and smoke, leaving only the barren wastes in front of them and the gaping mouths of the fairies and a smile of acknowledgement from the heiress of the Lord of the nobles.

* * *

 **Phantom Lord guild control room**

After Raizel's display of command, the poor phantom master was left in a bewildered state. He was already tearing at his head, unable to believe the scene that enacted itself in front of him.

"THAT BASTARD! WHAT THE HELL IS HE?! HOW COULD HE TAKE CONTROL OF _MY_ SOLDIERS?! THE SOLDIERS I CREATED WITH MY MAGIC! THEY HAVE NO WILL BUT OF MY OWN! IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE! AND HE DIDN'T EVEN DO ANYTING!" raged on the crazed phantom lord, breaking and smashing everything in sight. The nearby guild members trembled in fear of incurring their master's wrath. Soon, he came to a standstill, and gasped for breath slowly. His expression became dark.

"No matter….I can sense some of the weaklings here…..fools, I'll just string up their corpses for them to see, that should teach them about messing with me! And there's still Abyss Break! THOSE FOOLS WILL PAY FOR MAKING A FOOL OUT OF ME! HAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

"Not if I can help it" came a voice from behind. The phantom master turned violently and witnessed an elegantly dressed blond figure make its way towards him, a creepy grin pasted on his face. Behind him, 4 other fairy mages followed suit.

"Who the hell are you?!" the evil mage demanded.

"You won't be around long enough to remember my name" came the confident reply.

"Ha…..hahahahah….getting cocky are we? Do you know to whom you are talking to?! Do you?!"

"Why should I care?" questioned Frankenstein.

"Fool! You stand before one of the 10 saints, Master Jose Porla of Phantom Lord! I now hold the lives of your miserable comrades sniveling at the broken-down mess of what you call a guild with Abyss Break ready to fire anytime! I can easily send you to hell without so much as breaking a sweat!" he glared. But the scientist stood unfazed, his grin ever more prominent of his face.

"You still haven't figured it out have you?" he sneered.

"What do you…"

"Master Jose, the Abys Break spell is non-functional! The Phantom Lord Mk-II has stopped moving and has currently lost all power!" said one of the operators frantically.

"WHAT?!"

"You see, we already knew about how that little spell of yours works, so I just made some arrangements in advance. Your Phantom 4 are probably sound asleep somewhere" he explained. "You're the crazy one here, to even **think** of pointing something as low class as this toy at master!" thundered Frankenstein, something that sent shivers down Jose's spine.

* * *

 **Sometime earlier**

 **Gray vs Juvia**

Gray stared dumbfounded into the eyes of his challenger, who was acting really strange.

" _The hell is with this woman….at first she gives up, and then she attacks me out of nowhere, and even then she keeps getting tipsy whenever I look at her and now she's suddenly attacking me with boiling water!….I can't figure this out at all…"_ thought Gray deadpanned. The fact that his attacks simply passed through her wasn't helping.

" _Dammit! If only she wasn't so full of water…! Wait a minute…."_ Gray then stopped in this tracks, and so did Juvia.

"What's wrong? Finally decided to surrender to me?" she asked dreamily.

"No….the opposite in fact; I'll have you fall right here and now!" he smirked.

" _Ahh….fall he says! I've already…"_ she wandered off dreamily, but the ice mage wasted no time in lunging forwards and encasing the rain woman in a crystalline cage.

"Heh….too bad you're made up of water….I can just freeze you with my ice" he grinned.

" _He froze my whole body?! Not just that he also…"_ The rain woman moaned and Gray soon found out why he felt as if he was grabbing a soft, warm balloon. The ice encasing her shattered on its own and the embarrassed ice mage backed off, eyes popping.

"N…No…I..I..!"

" _Ah…I'm so embarrassed!_ " thought Juvia shyly.

"O..Okay, do over!" demanded Gray, covering his eyes.

"No….it's enough…..I cant hurt you….it's your win" she said, yielding.

"Does that mean that you acknowledge that you can't win against me?" asked Gray.

"…..I am stronger than Lucy….I can protect you" she said with a voice full of concern.

"Huh? Whats that supposed to mean? Why would you..?"

"That's because…."

"Did the rain just get heavier?" questioned the ice mage uncomfortably. "Jeez way to spoil the mood even further" . The rain woman didn't let that go unnoticed. She retreated sadly to herself, recollecting the bitter memories from her past.

"You're just like them" she said in a small voice, full of hate.

"Huh?"

"THAT SETTLES IT!" came the screaming declaration, and her entire body started 'boiling' once again. The ice mage made a thin covering of ice to protect his body from the extreme heat and took several steps back. Juvia created several waves of boiling water, which cut and burnt his arms. Gray created an Ice sword and sliced through the next wave of attacks, but this time making sure to freeze the waves along with his sword strikes.

"Argh! That does it !" raged the phantom 4 member, and sent an entire blast of scalding water, that engulfed Gray in an instant.

" _Shit, this is really bad! How the hell is it so hot even with all this rain….wait, that's it!"_ Concentrating his mind so as to not go unconscious, he focused all his remaining magic energy in an area surrounding him 360 degree, freezing the entire spherical area around him in a concentrated area, along with the rain. The rain drops turned into tiny icicles, that upon impact with Juvia, instantly vaporized, but slowly reducing her temperature. Plus, Gray cooled the air around Juvia's body, adding to the effect. Soon enough, the entire column of water in which he was engulfed in froze, along with Juvia's entire body. But it soon vaporized after meeting her boiling water body, which in return cooled off after contact with Gray's ice. Juvia fell down in defeat, with numerous injuries over her body, so did gray.

" _I'll have to thank Frankenstein later…the way he manipulated his energy to create spikes to perforate the enemy….if I hadn't seen that I wouldn't have gotten the idea to use the rain as a weapon…. That guy…..just how many battles was he in to fight like that…."_

"Cooled down enough yet?" he asked, huffing. "The rain….it stopped. Finally, it's clear"

" _So this is the clear sky…so beautiful"_ remarked Juvia inwardly.

"Wanna continue?" challenged Gray, to which the rain woman's heart skipped several beats and she yielded, contended.

* * *

 **Elfman vs Sol**

"You should really give up" suggested sol in a thick French accent. "You can't win against me especially if you use only one arm. Such a pity". Elfman lay face down with numerous bruises and flesh wounds, bleeding profusely. "But don't worry too much, after the Abyss Break fires, you'll be joining your sister soon enough" said the slimy phantom mage, closing in on the downed Elfman. The last statement triggered an uncomfortable flashback of his white haired younger sister, and his memory of looking at his powerful arms and legs when he was transformed.

" _Lisanna….."_ he thought, shivering and full of regret. Then he remembered something the blond scientist had told him on the way to the phantom guild.

 **Flashback**

" _So, you're Elfman right? What's up with the name?" asked Frankenstein, observing Elfman's physique._

" _I dunno. My parents died long before I could ask them the meaning behind my name. It has 'man' in it, so it's manly. And that's all that matters to me!" replied the white haired Strauss approvingly._

" _Why do I sense a dormant fear in you? You have great power, but it's like you're unconsciously suppressing it with your fear…..more like your fear is clouding it"_

" _That's…."_

" _Something you cant tell? Let me guess…you lost control of your powers and someone got the short end of the stick that time…..am I right?" surmised the blond._

" _How did you…" asked Elfman shocked._

" _Simple enough….because I've been there myself…..master got hurt once trying to stop me from rampaging" he explained. "Which is why I should tell you….by fearing your powers, you are accepting the fact that you're not the one in control. Remember, YOU are the one who fights; YOU are the one that protects and hence YOU are the one that wields that power to do both, not the other way around. By fearing your powers, is it helping you in preventing what has happened before from happening again? If nothing else, you'll lose what you have left BECAUSE you refused to get over your own feelings. Believe in yourself, for if your sister believes in you, why can't you do the same? Don't you think it would bring peace to your sister's mind, knowing that you've gotten over something she worries about? And besides, isn't that what a real 'man' would do?" chuckled the blond. And with that, Elfman was left amazed, rethinking about everything that has happened and the number of times he'd seen his sister with that expression of hers, whenever she was reminded about his current state. He stared at his right hand, thinking hard about what the scientist said._

 **Flashback end**

Elfman slowly picked himself up, supporting himself somehow. His whole body was aching from straining his muscles he never used in an eternity.

"As a man, it is shameful if I cant even use my whole powers because of my feelings…..and to have my sister worry about it is even more so shameful!" he shouted out, slowly transforming his entire body. He could feel the powerful energy from his partial transformation.

"But this time, I'll protect nee-chan so that she never has to cry again!" he roared, the ground exploded from the force his transformation released. His size increased exponentially, with his arms growing longer, larger and sprouting sharp claws, and they become covered in thick fur, with his abdominal and pectorals prominent in the middle. Elfman's hair took on a mane-like appearance, his ears and canine teeth became pointed, and he grew a pair of striped horns pointing upwards, starting from a plate on his forehead. Sol was now sweating bullets.

"He..hey now, zis wasn't as was told…" he stammered, slowly backing away. The transformed mage wasted no time in lunging forwards and striking the said earth element user of the phantom 4 into the ground. The Strauss sibling rasped, and then slowly reverted to his normal state.

" _I…I did it….I could transform without losing control….thank you, Frankenstein-dono…"_ said the exhausted and injured Elfman, and with a grateful expression, proceeded towards the control room to regroup.

* * *

 **Erza vs Aria**

The red haired beauty was currently equipped with her Flight armor, which looked more like a fancy attire bearing reminiscence to a cheetah. Its breastplate took the form of a very revealing, armored cheetah-patterned top, with some bare armor protruding from the upper part of it, in correspondence to Erza's breasts, and some fur lining the lower edges. There was no waist guard, with the armor instead sporting a pair of revealing black shorts, with a belt holding a cloth hanging over the scarlet mage's left leg attached to them; the arms were covered by dark armbands reaching up just below Erza's shoulders, with her left arm being protected by cheetah-patterned armor, consisting of a single pauldron and a wide arm guard. Her legs were covered in similar stockings reaching up to her thighs, with armored, asymmetric high-heeled boots over them: yet again, the left leg was the more armored one, with the boot reaching up to the knee, which was protected by a cheetah-patterned knee guard; the right leg, on the other hand, was covered by a boot only reaching up to part of Titania's calf. The outfit was completed by a large collar around Erza's neck and by a tail hanging from the back of her shorts, both made of bushy fur, plus a pair of large cheetah's ears adorning both sides of Erza's head. She was also equipped with a pair of shortswords with elaborate handguards similar to a rapier's, shaped like rose's thorns and a pair of knives of elaborate blades with a saber-tooth tiger's head as handguards and fur-covered pommels. But she wasn't completely unharmed. With her drastically reduced defense and no magic left in her body, she suffered numerous burns and flesh wounds from the airspace explosions from Aria. To add to that, her armor specialized in speed and left her open in the areas of defense and offence. Although Frankenstein's idea had saved her from having her magic instantly drained, it wasn't any easier than she thought. Another cry of 'Zetsu' came from the air elemental user, and she jumped to avoid the purple blast of airspace magic that exploded beneath her feet. The magic energy in her swords was already drained after Aria tried to use void on her when they first engaged in battle.

"How utterly foolish and sorrowful, Titania….with no magic power in your body and your weapons, how long until you get blasted to smithereens by my airspace" said Aria in a sad tone.

" _Damn, if this keeps up, I'll be in a lot of trouble…..Frankenstein…..what were you thinking when you asked me to use only this armor…..it did save me from being hit like master Makarov but what's the point if I cant attack back? With no magic energy in my weapons, his magical defense stops my blade from striking his flesh! What can I do…."_

"Ah, but I've had enough…..I will put you out of your misery by showing you my full power as a reward for facing me with nothing but your bare swords…..behold!" claimed the air mage, and removed the blindfolds that were restricting his enormous powers. The air around her got very heavy and Aria's magical energy skyrocketed. "My ultimate spell, the airspace of death; Zero!" Around him, all of his magical energy concentrated in a circular area around himself, which manifested itself in the form of a miniature hurricane. Many miniature Zetsu orbs were forming inside it.

"This airspace devours the life of all around it! Now die!" he said, raising his palms. But that's the cue Erza needed. Using the supersonic speeds from her Flight Armor, she used the wind pressure from her sword swing and aimed at the center of the hurricane like attack, which immediately dissipated and with no magic in Aria to block the hit, struck him squarely in the torso, putting him down for good. The red head landed with a thump and was lost in her thoughts.

" _By focusing only on speed, this flight armor gave me the ability to swing my blade at supersonic speeds, thus using the wind pressure to create vacuum waves…..and the center of that hurricane was a region of low pressure, which gave me the opening to dispel his attack…this would've been impossible with any other armor of mine…..what a guy! Just from seeing me fight once, he could come up with such a strategy and could anticipate his opponent's moves…just how much battle experience does he have…."_ She decided to put it behind her mind for the time being, and went to regroup with the said scientist.

* * *

 **Natsu vs Gajeel**

The two dragons were panting heavily after the most intense and bloodiest fight in their entire lives as dragon slayers. But it was clear who had the upper hand. With so much metal around, the iron dragon slayer's powers had anything but dwindled. Natsu on the other hand was quickly running out of options. Plus, it seemed that the iron dragon slayer learned something new from being attacked by Frankenstein, for the iron spears that he threw at the pink head were lethal to say the least. It took too much time to melt them and they rushed at the fire dragon slayer at blinding speeds. The two were then interrupted by running footsteps of multiple people coming through the guild's spiraling stairs. The duo turned around to look at Frankenstein, Gray, Erza and Elfman accompanying the scientist.

"Dammit, not you again!" cussed the ace of the phantom mages.

"Oh don't make that face, I wont be interfering with your fight" assured Frankenstein, "but you're still gonna pay for what you've done, and I wont be the one to settle the score" he threatened.

"Thanks a lot, Frankenstein!" said Natsu enthusiastically. "Don't wory, I'll take him down!" he said, pounding his fists.

"And just how exactly are you planning to do that? Have you forgotten the state you're in or how I wiped the floor with you so far?" taunted the spiky haired dragon slayer.

"You don't have to tell me what to do!" retorted Natsu, and charged his mouth with fire, ready to shoot his signature Fire Dragon's Roar. Gajeel only smirked and covered himself with his iron dragon scales. The pink haired teen then unleashed a wide flame wave, which engulfed Gajeel, but his scales rendered them useless. But using the cover from the attack, Natsu charged up his fists and rushed forwards.

"Fire Dragon's Iron fist!"he shouted, throwing a punch at the phantom mage's face. Quick as lightning, Gajeel caught the blow and threw another at the pink haired teen's torso, which caused him to cough violently. He took few steps back, and wiped the blood off his mouth.

"Dammit, nothing I do is affecting him!" said Natsu, gasping for breath.

" Tsk Tsk…you're doing it all wrong" cautioned Frankenstein wiggling his finger. " I don't want to interfere too much, so I'll just give you one small advice. You're the type that likes to go out smashing stuff without strategy and goes on a rampage. Although that style of fighting IS really enjoyable and something I can relate to, this time, use an attack that has a piercing effect. Then use something to boost your speed to augment it"

"Heh, try all you want, there's nothing that you could possible do with the magic you have left" said Gajeel confidently.

"Ah ah ah" nodded Frankenstein negatively. "You get to feast but not your opponent? Seems unfair. Here, this ought to help" Frankenstein blew up some machinery nearby setting them all alight. Like a starved dragon, the pink haired teen looked like he had teleported to the flames when he landed near them with a single jump and began devouring the flames voraciously.

"Aah~~~ That hit the spot!" he said satisfied. "Now, I'm getting fired up!"

"Tch" spat Gajeel and drew back his mouth, preparing to fire off a roar. Natsu coated his entire body in flames, and concentrated them around his head.

"Iron dragon's…. **Roar!** " A massive tornado of air and metal shrapnel, lethal and fast, spiraled its way towards the fire dragon slayer. Natsu streamlined his body, and lunged through the center of the tornado using flames concentrated at his feet as boosters. His flame body using the spin of the dragon roar from Gajeel and the speed from the boost on his legs, easily tore through his arm and sent the Iron Dragon slayer plummeting through multiple pillars until he finally went flying out of the window.

"Fire Dragon's Sword Horn" said Natsu, regaining his posture.

"Nicely done! Although cutting off his arm like that is….." said Erza uncertainly.

"I hope you didn't kill him" said Elfman worriedly.

"Nah, he'll be fine, a dragon's scales aren't that easily damaged. I'm guessing he'll be knocked out from the fall, but nothing more. Especially since he's the iron dragon slayer, his iron body will take in most of the damage and he can fix his arm back by eating metal. That punk deserved it for what he's done. But more importantly, we've still got one more nuisance to deal with" reminded Frankenstein. Natsu nodded his head, gave one final look towards the window from where the Iron Dragon Slayer was last seen, and proceeded to the highest level of the guild along with the others.

"Frankenstein…..thank you" said Natsu smiling.

"Think nothing of it….and besides, all I did, was tell you a simple tactic. Given enough experience, anyone can do it. For now, let's finish this" he suggested. Natsu gave an approving nod, and the group sped to the top.

* * *

 **Present**

For some reason, the Phantom Lord master could not help but feel fear towards the blond scientist. Perhaps it was the aura around him or his killing intent. But he wasn't going to let it end that way. Not without a fight. Clenching his fists, he composed himself.

"Hehehehehehe….HAHAHAHAHAHA! FOOLS! You really think that by simply defeating my underlings you've won! Well tough luck, suckers! Watch as I decimate the lot of you first and then that rat which took out my shade soldiers will be next! My dark powers are more than enough for-". But the evil mage could only talk so much before multiple purple spikes pierced him in his arms, legs, gut and shoulder blades, and pinned him to the wall, crucifying him.

"Wha..what! What is this ?!" cried Jose.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!" laughed out Frankenstein Maniacally and evil and sadistic grin pasted on his face. "Scumbag! You almost kill 3 kids to death, almost send an old man to the underworld, destroy the homes of many and now you call master a rat?! Have you gone insane!? A slimeball like you doesn't even deserve death! Stay there like the dog you are, squirming and pleading for death in agony! HEHEHEHHEHEHEHEHEHE!" With his laughter echoing throughout the entire phantom guild, and the most sadistic expressions on Frankenstein's face, Erza, Natsu, Gray and Elfman were unsure whether they should be scared or sweatdrop.

"Next time…remind me when Frankenstein enters the guild" gulped Natsu. Gray nervously agreed.

"I don't know who's more scarier….nee-chan when she's pissed off or him when he's having _fun_ " said Elfman, shuddering. Erza too had a complex expression of fear, disbelief and respect for the crazed scientist, unsure which one she should feel.

* * *

 **Whew that was super long! Almost as big as 2 chapters! Well anyways, very very sorry about the delay, I have nothing to say to excuse it, except for the fact that I was planning out for the plot. Also, I've put my other series on a temporary hiatus, so that I can work on this one more often. The reason I did this was to make this weekly or atleast release a chapter every 10 day. Thank you so much for reading, and for all the reviews. I know you might have some questions, so feel free to fire away and I'll answer them in a PM or in the beginning of the next chapter. Until next time! Next chapter: A guest and a Quest.**


	8. Chapter 8: - A new guest and a new quest

**Hey guys, so in this chapter I'll be introducing a little cameo appearance of a certain object from a very famous series. Maybe the credits would make it clear ;D. Going on ahead, I'll be answering your reviews below, and then on to the next chapter.**

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 **EDIT: I forgot to include me responses to reviews, so here they are. Sorry about that!**

 **Dxhologram : You got that right ;)**

 **Saru : No one's got shit on Franky :D :D**

 **Terra : It was about time ;)**

 **Greer123 : Thanks!**

 **SleeplessForest27 : Glad you liked that part! I wasnt sure how it would be taken, but I'm glad people like it positively! You have a surprise in store in this one as well ;)**

 **Guest : Thanks!**

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 **NOTICE: - Another important thing I wanted to mention. I've taken so much time to update this chapter since I was going through a bit of writer's block and also because I was working on something for this fanfic, an artwork to be precise. I've put it up in my deviantart page, do give it a look. It concerns one of the most important ships in this story. My id is sreshtiyer. I hope you like it!**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: - A new guest and a new quest**

"Well now, I suppose we should get going" suggested Frankenstein. Nods of agreement followed. "This whole episode has been one never ending annoyance…I really need to relieve my stress" he said with a grin. He charged up his fist with his dark energy, his grin speaking for what he was about to do.

"Relieve your stress..? You don't mean…." Started Erza with a comical expression. Franky just grinned even more, jumped and then punched towards the ground, sending another powerful beam piercing through the floor all the way to the bottom. The entire structure crumbled, taking Frankenstein and party with it. The blond simply repositioned himself gracefully, stepping on the debris as he descended. The same could not be said for the others however, as they outright fell down to their apparent doom, comically screaming.

"AAAHHHH! He's insane!" shouted Gray, hugging Natsu, who also did the same. Happy stuck on to Natsu's clothes, followed suit as well, screaming along the way. Then he looked confused, and gasped as he realized something stupidly fundamental.

"Wait a second, I can frickin' fly!" he screamed, and slowed down Gray and Natsu's descent. Erza copied Frankenstein's movements, while still in her current armor, allowing her to be as light as possible. The one who suffered the worst however was Elfman, for whom his physique alone did most of the work. Close to the ground however, Frankenstein grabbed the strauss sibling and helped him land safely. The gang took a huge breath of relief.

"Hey, atleast give us a warning!" protested Natsu, his eyes comically popping and shaking his fists.

"And that's your idea of stress relief?! I've never seen even Natsu do so much damage so fast!" added Gray, joining suit with Natsu.

"Whatever, I'm feeling a bit better now, and besides, that was payback for destroying the guild….We should go check on the others" suggested the blond, and the team followed closely behind.

"Hey! I hope you haven't killed him, cuz no one dies in Fairy Tail! If they did, it would be breaking out of character!" said a voice from the background, and for some reason, only Frankenstein could see and hear him, the author of Fairy Tail, Hiro Mashima.

"Zip it, Mashima-sensei! This isn't Fairy Tail is it now? Once I come in the story, plot armor won't work against my crazy lover!" said Frankenstein with a smug expression, and began laughing to himself. Regardless to say, Natsu and group did find it weird, but assumed this was one of his higher power moments and left it to him. Mashima left disappointed.

"It's ok man. Trust me, I've been there" consoled Son Jiho, one of the authors of Noblesse.

"Yeah, sometimes, even we feel powerless before his character" added Kwangsu Lee, the other author, sweatdropping. "Let's just go get a beer, you'll feel better" he suggested, and the three went on to share their tales amongst each other.

* * *

 **Ruin of Fairy Tail, a little while before**

Amidst the ruins of their home, the members of Fairy Tail took this time to recover, the ones that were relatively ok were helping those who were not. Azlack and Bisca had currently gone over to Porlyusica's place to check on Makarov's condition. Suddenly, the phantom MK-II that had been stationary for some time, started collapsing, after being hit by something. All heads turned in that direction, cautious.

"Hey the enemy base collapsed!" alerted one.

"Does this mean that we won…?" wondered another optimistically.

"But Natsu and the others are still there aren't they?" asked Cana worried.

"But wasn't Frankenstein there with them as well? I'm sure they'll be fine….After seeing Raizel, I get the feeling that he's got more than he's letting out" said Loki.

Mira on the other hand, had a lost expression on her face. A torrent of questions were whizzing around her head, and she wasn't sure which she wanted answered first. She slowly made her way to Raizel, who was currently resting against a tree on his own.

"Raizel….about earlier…" she started uncertain. " was that truly your power?" she asked, more concerned than curious. Rail stared at her without saying a word, and simply nodded.

"But what about your injuries? Are you feeling alright? I thought you were…"

"There is nothing to worry about. I am fine now" he assured.

"But…"

"Right now, we must worry about the guild and helping everyone else recover, don't you think?" asked Raizel, and that was enough for Mira to be convinced.

"Hey everyone, I can see someone coming from Phantom Lord's machine!" noted one, which caused all the heads to turn towards the horizon. Indeed, they could all see a silhouette, followed by another and then so on till a whole bunch of shadows backed by the setting sun came into view. Smiles decorated the faces of the weary victors of the battlefield, and they joyously sped towards.

* * *

 **A few hours later**

The air was rent with the smell of booze and the chatter of accomplished voices of the members of Fairy Tail who were now taking a well-deserved rest at the basement of their guild. Adding to the fact that their dear master Makarov had also made a full recovery thanks to Frankenstein's efforts and Porlyusica's help, the celebrations were all the more sweeter. Lucy was sulking in a corner, still unwilling to talk to anyone.

"Lucy…none of this was your fault. No one blames you in any way for what has happened…see, even master is here, completely recovered! You really should join us to take your mind off things" suggested the white haired beauty.

"But….if I was simply strong enough…." She muttered.

"So….you're worried about not being strong, is that it? The helplessness?" queried Frankenstein. Lucy simply gave him a nod.

"That may be true, but not everyone is born strong. We can always overcome our weaknesses, with the right resolve. But I do believe that your equipment could use a bit of an upgrade. Here, take this" he said, handing Lucy a leather whip.

"Huh, a whip? But I already have one" she said, pointing towards her waist.

"Yeah but this one is a special one. It's called Vampire Killer, a whip made by an alchemist with the souls of generation of human heroes in it. It was once used to destroy a very evil monster and acts like a magic nullifier. Go on, try it out" he said. The ground near them then broke open, and a pink haired maid popped out of it.

"Virgo!" exclaimed Lucy

"Pardon my intrusion, Frankenstein-sama, but I would like to propose a better replacement for Lucy-sama's whip" she said, and took out one of her own, except this one had just the handle, with star ornaments. Virgo swung it and a fluid like matter protruded like a whip, and the flowing whip destroyed some part of the remaining furniture.

"It's called Fleuve d'étoiles, meaning the river of stars. It can even change it's length, is strong enough to break things. It's the perfect weapon for Lucy-sama" said Virgo with confidence.

"It's impressive, but I would still like her to have Vampire Killer" insisted Frankenstein. "Maybe you should have a look as well" Upon his suggestion, the maid celestial spirit took another good look at the ancient whip.

" _What is this…..I can sense such strong energy! This isn't normal!"_ she gasped. "Alright, I suppose I can accept that. As long as I can be of service of Lucy sama" she said ,and left the way she came.

"Well then, why don't you try it out?" he suggested "I'm thinking a certain pink haired brat who's always leaking magic by breathing fire would be good target practice, don't you think?" winked the scientist. Lucy giggled. She then took up the whip, and with a mischievous smile, cracked at natsu right in the butt.

"AIEEEE!" squealed Natsu, jumping in the air comically, clenching his butt. And sure enough, the flames in his mouth disappeared. Satisfied, rolled it up and slung Vampire killer in her waist.

"No kidding!" she said, excited.

"Oy, what was that for!" demanded Natsu, eyes popping. "And you've finally gotten better I see! Come and join us!" he said.

"Yeah!" agreed Gray.

"Frankenstein…..thanks a lot!" she grinned, and went off to join up with Natsu and team.

Erza and Raskreia were engaged in a serious conversation, one that caught several people's attention.

"You wish to learn swordsmanship from me?" asked Raskreia confused, as if she couldn't believe the request that the red haired beauty asked of her.

"Yes. I realized after watching you take care of the phantom lord members earlier at their hideout, and also from what Mira tells me. If you guys weren't there, I wouldn't have been able to protect those that I hold dear to me. I can't do that unless I improve my current strength" she replied with a pleading look in her eyes.

"I understand. But even if I wanted to, it would be next to impossible for a normal human to learn the kind of style I use. It's not because you're weak, but simply because my kind of people are naturally stronger than regular humans. I'm sorry" replied the raven haired beauty apologetically, which greatly disappointed titania.

"Now now, why don't you give it a try first?" suggested Frankenstein "After all, the Lord did send you here to improve your skills. And she isn't any pushover either, so you'll definitely be able to improve as well. What do you say?"

"Frankenstein…." Said Erza. Raskreia looked at Frankenstein, deep in thought.

"Hmm….alright. But I have one condition. Before I can take you on as my apprentice, you have to prove your worth first. I can only train you at my level, and it would be a waste of time if you couldn't handle it. Therefore, before I can take you on under me, I shall test you in a dual, one on one. You are free to use any armor or weapon in your possession, and if you manage to land a hit on me, then I shall accept you under my wing. I shall only use my sword and nothing else Otherwise I suggest you look elsewhere. I shall accept your challenge anytime you wish. That is all" she said sternly. Frankenstein sighed, knowing that things wouldn't have ended as easily as he thought. He was well aware of how difficult it would be for a human to match up to a noble's skills, let alone with one who was the direct blood relative of the noble Lord. Although she was still not as strong as him, she was atleast as strong as any of the family leaders, if not greater; and Frankenstein knew she could never match up to Raskreia. Even without her blood field or her telekinesis, she would easily dominate the red head.

"There is truth to what she tells. This time we were lucky to have the three of them helping us, but in the future, threats more dangerous than Phantom Lord are very likely to arrive. I suggest that not just Erza, but all of us should become stronger to face whatever challenges that may come our way" suggested Makarov, capturing the attention of all the members.

"Sounds fair. I was thinking about having sparring matches with some of you as well. Like I said, you guys are all strong, your abilities have a of of potential, but you end up using it the wrong way. For example, Natsu has tremendous offensive power, and thus he charges straight up into the frontlines without any strategy whatsoever." Explained Frankenstein.

"It's more fun that way!" claimed Natsu, pumping his fists.

"Although I can't decline that, there are times when your enemies are much stronger than you can even imagine, ones that outweigh you in terms of offense, defense and speed. What will you do then? Not just Natsu, but all of you could be a lot stronger if you simply used your abilities to your fullest extent. For example, Gray" explained Frankenstein, turning towards him. "Your ice abilities are only limited by your own imagination correct? But you seem to use only a limited set of moves. Why is that?" he asked again. Now, the bar had quieted down and all were listening to Franky with rapt attention.

"I dunno…..like you said, I have never been able to do something different so far, because it all solely depends on the kind of situation at that point of time. I adapt to the situation and create shapes accordingly" replied the ice mage.

"Exactly. At this rate, the only way you can improve is simply with more experience with different kinds of situations. I also did notice that you have to 'name' your moves before executing them. I find this both strange and inefficient. You should simply be able to use your moves as is, saving both time and also the fact that you're practically announcing your next move to your opponent. The strauss siblings are all within S class, yet have not shown me the power I expected to see." Said the blond, then turning to face them.

"I've already said about how you should never fear your powers, for you will be doing the opposite of what you expect instead. From what I hear, you could finally do a full body transformation correct?" he asked Elfman.

"Yeah….and its all thanks to what you told me. I would've never realized it otherwise….that was really manly!" thanked the younger of the strauss sibling. Franky sweatdropped.

"Mira…..the root of your powers is not something to be taken lightly…..I can sense that you too are afraid of your powers, even though they are dark, they aren't trying to consume you or anything like that….are you hesitant because of the very nature of your powers?" he asked.

"How can I..….like you said, it's because my powers are so strong, if I lose control of them because of my emotions, I could end up hurting those around me as well…and besides, they don't even look human…." She said in a quiet tone.

"Nee-chan…" said Elfman.

"Mira, I've already told you, no one…" began Makarov, but was interrupted by Frankenstein.

"Then, let me show you something" He place his hand on her shoulder and raised his power by a tiny bit. Once again, those in the vicinity could sense the hostility in his energy, something they were still having trouble getting used to. It didn't shock them as it did when he showcased his powers the first time, but it still felt unpleasant to say the least. But Mira on the other hand was another story entirely. She had a horrific expression on her face, and tightly wrapped herself, as if to protect herself from something. She was also shaking from the very feeling of it. Frankenstein immediately let go of her.

"Hey, what did you do?!" demanded Cana.

"No..it's ok…..he just made me feel his energy up close….but…..Frankenstein! What was that?!" she asked, quivering.

"That was just about 1% of my total power, I just demonstrated that to you so you know what kind of energy it is" answered the scientist.

"But…..how?! I've never seen something act like….that!All those voices….." she replied frozen from fear.

"What happened?" asked asked Makarov concerned. " _1% ?! No way! That nearly matched Erza's power!"_

" _To make even that Mira cry out in fear….._ " thought Cana.

"My powers are very similar to Mira's, the only difference being that my power tries to take over my soul, and I have to keep it in check….it's like having one crazy lover" said Franky cheekily. The others sweatdropped at the comparison.

"What do you mean take over your soul? Are your powers self aware ?" inquired Makarov.

"You could say that. Even in battle, I have to constantly watch out for my powers and consciously monitor how I use it. One wrong move, and I could lose control and let my 'crazy lover' take over. If I had to give an example, say that Natsu's dragon slaying magic actually came from a dragon sleeping inside Natsu, one that's trying to devour him whenever it gets a chance. And every time you step in too far into its territory, the dragon swallows you whole, and makes you go berserk instead" said Frankenstein darkly. There was silence that followed.

"Not just that, but everytime he uses his powers, he experiences excruciating pain and mental agony and that only gets worse the more he uses his powers." finished Raizel sadly. Shocked by this new information, the members of Fairy Tail now had a newfound respect for the blond.

"Anyways, do your powers look scary to you now?" questioned Frankenstein, looking towards Mira. "If you really want to overcome your weakness, to truly become stronger, then accept the fact that using your magic could have consequences that may not be always favorable, but also believe that there will always be others who are ready to accept them as you are". Upon those words, the entire guild beamed, and so did Mira, for even though his tone was stern, there was a certain warmth behind them.

"Thank you" she said simply. "I may have feared my own abilities, but after today, I fear more, the inability to help those that mean the most to me. I too shall give it my all, so that I won't look back and think about things that might have been!" came the bold declaration. This was followed by optimistic 'ohs' and 'yeah's'

"Seeing you like this, it reminds me of the First master of Fairy Tail, the one who was called Fairy Strategist Mavis….never have I seen someone who could conjure up such unique tactics in such a short time" said Makarov in awe. "You people continue to amaze me ever since you first got here"

"Speaking of which, how did Raizel recover so much? When we last saw him, he was near death's door, and now, he has enough power to make an army of shade soldiers kneel at a simple command. What DID you do at Porlyusica's?" asked Max.

"Ah that! I completely forgot in all this chaos. I couldn't have been more satisfied by…" They were interrupted by the sounds of approaching footsteps, and the figure of Rayga Kertia made its appearance amongst the guild members.

"Ah, please forgive me for intruding, since I couldn't find a door, the broken sign outside told me that this is the Fairy Tail guild, I am very sorry about intruding during your times of crisis, but I must ask, have you seen a person called Frankenstein?" asked the leader of the kertia family.

"Rayga! How are YOU here?" asked Frankenstein astonished.

"Frankenstein! So you were here after all! Then am I to presume that you have successfully found Raizel-nim?!" he inquired, unable to contain the anxiety.

"I am right here, Rayga Kertia" replied the Noblesse, making himself visible to the blond family leader.

"Raizel-nim!" breathed Rayga, and immediately knelt in front of him.

"Rise" came the swift order, which Rayga did so diligently.

"Whoa whoa…what's going on here?" asked Gray confused.

"Are they acquaintances? But this man just knelt in front of Rai….." wondered Erza.

"From those looks, that elegance, it would seem so" said Mira.

"He looks like a manly elf!" claimed Elfman.

"Manly elf…? More like elfman…hey wait! Elfman! Haha that name suits him more than you it seems!" chimed Cana.

"From the smell of it, that blond guy and Raskreia and Rai all seem to be from the same group" said Natsu.

"Then he is also a special human like them?" wondered Makarov.

"Human?" asked Rayga confused.

"Ah you see…" started the scientist, and out of the corner of his mouth, hastily explained using a few sentences. Rayga's trained eyes caught every word, and he put two and two together.

"Ah yes, I too have special abilities like them. But more than that" Rayga faced the other members of FT now. "I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking care of Raizel-nim when he was at his most critical condition. Nothing I or the rest of us could ever do can repay this favor. We shall always be eternally grateful for this" he said humbly with a bow.

"He…hey now, we just did what we had to do….I'm sure any of us would've done the same had it been them. And besides, Rai, Raskreia and even this old man are good company!" said Gray flustered.

"You're giving us more credit than you think, young man" assured Makarov. "Why don't you stay a while? Looks like you've come here with some purpose"

"Ah yes, I almost forgot" he realized, and then turned to Frankenstein "Frankenstein, I am here on lord's orders to investigate about what happened to Raizel-nim, since there was no news since you left. But now that I am here, I can see that Raizel-nim is quite healthy, more so than what I even imagined. Would you mind explaining what happened here all this time?"

Frankenstein turned apologetic; for someone who considered himself a perfectionist, who liked leaving no unsatisfactory results anywhere, he felt ashamed that he failed to take care of the simple deed of informing the Lord about Raizel, especially when he was the reason they were here and could rejuvenate him.

"I am ashamed that I didn't do this earlier. To make up for this, I shall accompany you along with master and Raskreia to visit the Lord right away" he said.

"That would be most appreciated" came the kind reply.

"Speaking of which, how did you manage to enter this place? I thought only the.."

"Ah….Lord thought of an ingenious way for making a path for me or anyone else….Ah Lord!" he said in a voice full of admiration. Frankenstein listened deadpanned, for he could imagine what might have happened in Lukedonia all too well, especially when things concerned 'the' Lord. "But you still haven't told me how you helped Raizel-nim become so full of life"

"Yes I was getting to that, and seeing as how they want to know as well, I should explain things here" said the blond, and took a seat. " Well, to start off, where we come from, we don't have a 'magic rich' environment like eterno. So when we use our powers, it comes directly from within our bodies, and sometimes, the power can be so great, that it needs to be fueled from our very lifespan itself. Imagine for example, if master makarov's magic power actually shaved off years of his life everytime he needed to use a very powerful magic. The same thing here as well with my master. Everytime he uses his abilities, he loses a portion of his life….the more the force my master exerts, the more it hurts, unlike in my case, although I do feel pain with my abilities, I don't actually lose any lifeforce. This had always been a major problem since time memorial. But after coming here, I found the magic rich environment which is the source of all magic in Earthland. I thought if I could somehow replenish my master's life force by using this eterno; that's where Porlyusica came in. She is someone who specialized in healing magic, hence she knew ways to replenish lost eterno in a person. In our world, we have an artifact called the blood stone, which lets the user absorb life force from living things around them and convert it into power for the user, but as a side effect, it drives the user insane as well. All I did was combine a small part of the blood stone with a lachrima from Earthland that can absorb and replenish lost vitality in mages. I have Porlyusica to thank for that. With her help, I was able to combine the two to create a jewel that could convert the magic in Earthland's atmosphere to life force for my master. And soon enough, within a matter of few days, I successfully managed to restore all of his life force that he had ever lost in his entire lifetime. Not just that, now he won't lose any as well in the future, as long as the seal on his earrings is not removed. So in this sense, as long as master is not forced to use his full power, he wont lose any more vitality from using his sealed abilities. I can never be more satisfied from anything in my whole life" he finished.

"I'm glad things worked out so well for you guys!" grinned Makarov. The others nodded in agreement, adding to the joyous mood. But Rayga's reaction was completely different.

"Frankenstein….is that really true?! Have you really dealt with Raizel-nim's problem?!" he asked, white as a sheet.

"Yeah…" Rayga let out a deep breath.

"This is…..incredible…..As someone who was assigned to find the whereabouts of Raizel-nim, having heard such incredible news….I am honored to be chosen to be the bearer of such news" he said, on the verge of tears. "Frankenstein…..I would like to leave immediately to meet the Lord and the other family leaders….Such news must not be kept waiting for the Lord" he urged.

"Frankenstein….go with him" requested Makarov.

"Yeah….dont worry about us" assured Natsu. "I think your people have the right to know"

"…very well. I shall take my leave then" he said finally. "Although we just met everyone after being away from the guild, we're leaving again…I hope we can see each other soon. Really defeats the purpose of being guild members doesn't it?"

"Ah..trivial things like that are nothing. Even Gildarts, our strongest member, only stays here for a couple of days every time. He's always away on some mission or the other" assured Wakaba.

"So you just focus on what you need to do" continued Macao.

"I see...and about the training, We can work on it once I return. Till then, just keep performing your duties as normal, and try to keep in mind the things I told you guys while on missions. It should help you improve, even if a little" he said, getting up.

"Then…..see you soon" said Raizel, smiling. Mira, Erza and Cana blushed hard. Lucy swooned, and Levy looked confused. The reaction of other female members wasn't too far off.

"Thank you!" said Raskreia, with a smile of her own. This time, the men of the guild clenched their hearts dreamily and fell off their chairs, Makarov included. The 4 then made a small courteous bow, and left.

"Alright then, let's call it a day, it IS quite late, and we got some serious rebuilding to do!" ordered Erza, and no one felt like disobeying. The fatigue and sense of weariness were at their peak, feeling lazy, they all packed up, bid each other goodbye, and left for their own homes.

* * *

 **The next day**

The sounds of hammers hammering nails and the sounds of wood being sawed echoed the early morning of the town of Magnolia, as the largest guild in town was being repaired and rebuilt by its own members. Makarov used his giant form to handle transportation of material and heavy duty work, along with the powerhouse Elfman. Erza exquipped to her mason's clothes and began handling logs to be fixed at certain spots, and Gray and Natsu took it up to themselves to compete in deciding who would carry the most timber to their destinations. Unbeknownst to them, Juvia, the phantom mage was watching a particular ice mage since they assembled in front of the guild, with a bento at hand.

"Alright everyone, lunch time!" announced the white haired beauty, and the tired souls eagerly made their way towards a nearby clearing. Makarov was holding some request letters in his hands.

"Now that we're back to business, the requests are back as well" he said optimistically.

"Anything special, master?" asked Mira sweetly.

"Let's see here…Find missing cat, 5000 jewels; Defeat the troll in magnolia forest, 70000 jewels; Acquire 5 fire lachrima, 4000 jewels….." he ticked off his fingers, disappointed.

"I guess not, since we didn't get anything higher than 70000 jewels…" he said.

"Man, that's a bummer" sighed Natsu.

"Hey what's this?" asked Lucy, looking at an odd parchment in the back, which didn't quite stick out since it was almost stuck to the previous sheet. Carefully, she pulled it out.

"Huh, another request? Let's see…..Investigate the mystery of the anemic inhabitants of White Mist Town. S class mages only. Reward…..!" Lucy started shaking, slumped to the ground, her eyes frozen in disbelief.

"Hey what's wrong?" asked Cana concerned. "What did she see?" Makarov snatched the paper from the celestial mage's hands, and read it. He too, went white as a sheet.

"Master you too?! What does it say!" demanded Erza frantically.

"S class mages only. Reward….10 billion jewels" All of their hearts skipped several beats.

* * *

 **Phew, finally got to make another chapter! Hope you liked the 4** **th** **wall part at the beginning and the castlevania bit! Like I said, all credits belong to Konami for the Castlevania series, Hiro Mashima for Fairy Tail and Lee Kwangsu/Son Jiho for Noblesse. I'll soon try to update the next chapter, as I have something planned. AS you can see, I'm introducing a new quest, and I will be adding new elements to both series, in hopes of keeping it fresh and intriguing. The same goes for the pairings as well, and don't forget to check my deviantart page for one important concept art. Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next time!**


	9. Chapter 9: - The ball

**This is a new original arc which I thought of, and I'll be making some changes in the original timeline of the other arcs as well, but the changes will only be the order and time at which they take place, not many changes to the actual stuff that happens in the arc. I guess you can call this the White Mist town arc. Anyways, since this is my first attempt at trying something completely new, I hope it comes out well.**

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 **Responses to reviews: -**

 **Dxhologram:- Haha true that! Franky will be helping out a lot more people than just the 2 of them, at least so that FT gains power ups in a legit way rather than Nakama Power.**

 **SleeplessForest27: - He's gonna be staring in a separate section just for his 4** **th** **wall breaks from now on! Keep a look out for the 4** **th** **wall café section.**

 **Saru: - Nah, she cant use the full power of the whip since she isn't a Belmont. This is something I thought of as a way to give Lucy some powerup instead of letting her remain as weak as she is at that point in the story. Also, this was a way to build upon their trust in each other**

* * *

 **NOTICE:- There is another artwork for a character of this fic, Elowyn who is Raskreia's mother made by my friend Ashton Nyugen. His deviantart id is azazel0000. His works are amazing, so do check it out when you get the time.**

* * *

 **Chapter 9 : - The ball**

"Reward : - 10 billion jewels" read out the old master of Fairy Tail to his guild. Their hearts skipped several beats.

"Holy shit….10 billion jewels?! For a S – Class quest?!" exclaimed Gray.

"Wait, there's more" interrupted the master. "Caution. Warning. Beware. All S-class mages who have previously tried to investigate the mystery of the village's condition have all either died or are missing. The wounds are unlike anything ever seen. No magical herbs or spell works on them. Accept at your own risk"

There was an ominous silence. Never had they seen such wording in a _request form_ before. These words sounded too desperate, and yet, helplessness. The helplessness of about being unable to do anything against whatever they were facing, and sympathy for those who decided to help them and later feeling the guilt for letting them die.

"Master…." Began Lucy.

"….Currently, we have only 2 S class mages here currently, Mira and Erza" said Cana. " Mystogun is missing, Gildarts is away on _that_ quest, and Laxus is out of the question" ticked off the brunette. "Elfman would be okay, but I feel reluctant since he still hasn't taken the qualification exam, even if he has unlocked his powers"

"Raizel, Raskreia and Frankenstein are away as well" said Makarov.

"But still, they haven't taken the exam as well" said Max.

"Oh that reminds me! It completely slipped my mind in all this guild work. I'm promoting those 3 to S class under special circumstances" announced the master. There was a moment of silence, before the jaws of everyone practically dropped to the floor.

"EEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHH!?"

"But master, the exam.!" Mentioned Macao.

"Yeah, no matter who, they need to take the exam to qualify for S class don't they!" reminded Natsu, eyes popping "This isn't fair, gramps, I wanna get S class too!"

"Haha zip it, flame brain! You would be the last person here to get S class!" chided the ice mage.

"What was that, ice berg?!" retorted Natsu, shaking his fists.

"Wanna check it out right now?!" challenged Gray.

"Would you two shut it?!" thundered Erza, hammering their heads with her fists. The two instantly hugged each other, sweating billets.

" _Dang, totally forgot Erza was here!"_ thought Gray inwardly.

" _After seeing Frankenstein, we completely forgot how terrifying she can be_ " thought Lucy, deadpanned.

"On a serious note, those guys are more than qualified to be S class. Frankenstein himself is stronger than Mira at her strongest, from what I can tell. Raskreia too is quite gifted with her talent for swordsmanship, one that even surpasses Erza's. As for Raizel, from what Frankenstein said, we can assume he's the strongest of the bunch. This is more than enough reason for me to promote them to S class. They can probably be a good match for Gildarts as well. As for this quest, I am withholding it for now. No one here is quite yet ready to embark on this one. We should probably wait for Gildarts, Laxus or Mistogun to come back before we can tackle this one. Don't worry about the time limit, this quest doesn't have any deadline so we can accept their request anytime." Ordered Makarov seriously. "Meanwhile, you both should take this time to improve your abilities" he said, turning towards Mira and Erza.

"That is a good suggestion indeed, master" acknowledged the red head.

"Master, that is fine, but aren't you forgetting something important?" asked Mira in a sweet voice. "We just decimated another guild, which I'm sure is against the rules of the magic council, but I'm positive you've worked out something haven't you?" she remarked, almost in giggles. The master's face turned a shade paler, and broke into tears.

"Waaah!" he started crying on all fours comically, with the rest watching with an equally comical expression.

* * *

 **The previous night, Frankenstein and group**

The 3 nobles and Frankenstein sped off towards the forest where the portal to their world and Earthland lay. With each leap they took, they cleared several meters of distance and the moonless night perfectly concealed their movements.

"Frankenstein, what was that before? Why did you request that I pretend to be a human in front of those people?" questioned Rayga.

"You already know that the existence of our world is not supposed to be known to the people residing here. Lord requested that we get as less involved as possible as well" replied the blond.

"But haven't you already stayed here for more than a fortnight? How did you manage to conceal your identities?" came the immediate question.

"The same way I asked you to do it. We pretended to be 'special humans' with abilities and in a way, I don't think it's all that off. Of course, Raskreia here had a bit of a trouble initially, but things were smooth enough after that. We are now official members of their guild as well" he said, showing the purple guild stamp on the back of his hand.

"Even Raizel-nim?!" asked Rayga shocked.

"That's right" he said softly, showing the red sigil on his left hand.

"She did too" smirked Frankenstein, knowing that Raskreia was already shaken about what the scientist had said before, and the reaction on her face was priceless.

"I..I only did it because Rai…Lord ordered me too!" she said blushing, looking away.

"This is surprising indeed….I thought the Lord told us that it was improper for nobles to interfere with this world"

"Don't think too much about it…..after all, thanks to their help, we WERE able to do something that even Lord had no solution to for centuries" mentioned Frankenstein, for which Rayga nodded.

"Well, we're here, I'll give in the details to Lord along with the other family leaders" he added.

* * *

 **Sometime later, Lukedonia Throne Room**

The tension in the air was taking its shape; Many of the family leaders were struggling to stand still. Ever since Rayga left, no one wanted to return to their homes. Even the Lord was walking back and forth, without saying a word. Needless to say, even the ever cheerful Lord was prancing around in worry. The doors then flung open catching the immediate attention of the worried nobles.

"Ah Rayga, finally! Please tell me you have _some_ news" spoke the Lord immediately, surprising the family leader of the kertia clan.

"Lord, you've been waiting for me since I left?" he asked, surprised.

"Well, it DOES concern Raizel, so naturally I'm worried" he replied, waving his hand. "Do tell me you have good news"

"This is a first….to think I would see the Lord of the Nobles troubled over something this much" smirked Frankenstein.

"Peacock! Honestly, this is probably the most satisfied I have been, hearing your voice" he chuckled. The blond scientist also had a forced smile on his face, the noble leaders watched deadpanned.

"I do apologize for not being in contact, but then again, I was busy with things there, so it slipped my mind. It's just that I was so involved with my findings there that I wanted to study it further without interruptions" replied Frankenstein apologetically.

"Is it now? Speaking of which, what DID happen there? Did you find Raizel at all? We're all dying to know. And you better have brought my daughter safe as well" he reminded him, which caused Raskreia in the back to blush away embarrassed.

"Yeah I was getting to that. Regarding master and Raskreia, they're right here" he assured, and moved aside, revealing the said people. The entirety of the nobles in the sacred chamber gasped, taken aback by the aura of wellness that the noblesse showed. Raskreia too, had changed, her face now more lively and displaying more emotions than before.

"Raizel…you….I've never seen you this _healthy_ before….what in the world…." Gasped the Lord. " _And Raskreia….when was the last time she displayed such emotions…..can you see our daughter…..Elowyn?"_

"So, this is what happened…" began Frankenstein, and for a good half hour, began explaining of all their adventures at Earthland; finding Raizel at Fairy Tail, joining them as members, going to Porlyusica's to heal Raizel, and the battle with Phantom Lord. The family leaders were speechless and the Lord's eyes had an unreadable expression. Without saying a word, he simply got down from his throne, and started walking towards Frankenstein and stood right in front of him. There was a strained silence between the two, with no one having a clue as to what was going to happen next. Raizel raised his eyes, and Raskreia looked on confused. Without any warning, the eccentric Lord hugged the unsuspecting scientist full force. Franky took several steps back, the Lord still latching on to him. Raizel's eyes grew as big as tennis balls, and Raskreia's face was completely red. This time, the family leaders really did fall down in shock.

"H..Hey, what are you doing?! I knew you were crazy, but this is ingeniously crazy, even for you!" said a flustered Franky.

"Fa….father!" gasped Raskreia, her face still red.

"Thank you" he said earnestly, which shocked the blond being hugged. "You have no idea what this means to me, or how long I've tried, wished and hoped for something like this to happen. Despite having lived for thousands of years, _nothing_ has ever come so close to filling me with life than what you have done in just a few days" He let go of Frankenstein, who then straightened his coat. "And would you look at that" he continued smiling, looking at Raskreia. "How long has it been since you called me 'father', hmm? Truly, this is a day to be remembered" The said noble lady looked down embarrassed.

"It is nice to see you have such an expression, Lord" said Raizel smiling.

" _Raizel-nim smiled…"_ thought Gejutel.

" _This is a rare sight indeed…Lord has never been so happy ever since I've known him….and he is usually so cheerful"_ noted Rayga mentally.

" _To think that a human managed to do something that no other noble could do for centuries…..and its not just him….those 'mages' as he called them also were a part of this…..although this was all an accident, right from Raizel-nim entering their world and we sending people from our side to investigate it, there couldn't have been better results…..although, I fear that there is something we are overlooking…almost like the lull before a storm, like it's almost been too easy. Something so complicated like Raizel-nim's condition was solved in a flash. Could these incidents be somehow related to those dragon creatures alongside whom we nobles fought to protect their homeland 4 centuries ago? They appeared in human form and requested the help of the nobles to help drive away their nemesis, a single human. But unlike Frankenstein, this one could become one of these dragons as well, and not even the combined efforts of the Lord and the family leaders along with Frankenstein and Raizel-nim could slay him, but upon Frankenstein's suggestion and Raizel-nim's approval, we nobles got involved in a battle completely unrelated to us, and for beings who refused to disclose anything other than what they were and their enemy's identity. We weren't even sure what part of the world they came from, and at that time, we simply thanked the gods that we could get out of that battle alive. Now I am sure. They must have been from this Earthland originally, and the battle was fought in Lukedonia in an effort to hide the presence of that magical land from the people here. The dots are connecting, and it seems everything started from that time, 400 years ago. The absence of the other 6 family leaders worries me as well. But now is not the time, Lord has finally found something to be happy about, it would be wrong to break this blithe atmosphere….maybe the right time to discuss this would present itself soon enough"_ The leader of the Elenor clan was completely lost in these thoughts, and desperately wanted to question the Lord about them, but decided to let it slide for now, and went along with the current happenings.

"This calls for celebrations, don't you think?" suggested the Lord, with a mischievous smile. "We should do it like the humans do, have some food and drinks, get some girls, some music…" he started off dreamily, but Raskreia found it necessary to interrupt.

"Father! What would mother say!" she blushed.

"Hahahaha, I think it's ok to let loose occasionally! Come on, you guys are already backing out before we even do anything!" he teased.

"This is embarrassing" sighed Frankenstein.

"For once, I can agree with you" went along Gejutel.

"If the lord wishes to celebrate, then I shall celebrate as well" said Rayga in a manner of obedience.

"I highly doubt you get the mood" said Franky deadpanned. "Atleast you're not as bad as _him_ at this aspect" he sighed, looking at Krasis Blerster.

"LORD! BY YOUR WISHES I, KRASIS BLERSTER, SHALL CELEBRATE THIS OCCASION" declared the clan leader of the Blerster clan, his voice full of dedication and beating his chest. Lord and Franky both sighed.

* * *

 **The next day**

The halls of Raizel's mansion had never been busier and livelier, with multitude of lights and chandeliers adorning the humungous chambers of the nobles's adobe. A long row of linen covered tables lay on either side besides the walls, filled with all kinds of food and drink from all over the world. Not just clan leaders, but the Lord, Frankenstein, Raizel, Raskreia and even some members from each of the clans were invited for the festivities. Those who were present were dressed in formal attire from different parts of the world, and each clan wore matching attire to differentiate between themselves. The sponsor of the whole event, a single blond human scientist, grinned in pride. No one could figure out how he managed to arrange such extravagant food and decorations in a single day, but no one minded. The chamber was filled with more life than the lifespans of all the nobles present together. There was soft classical music being played by strange instrument made by Frankenstein. The only people missing were Raizel, Lord and Raskreia.

" _Where could they be? Maybe master got lost…."_ thought Frankenstein concerned. Just then the Lord entered and immediately heads turned towards the humungous doors. As if by reflex, all those present arched their necks in a bow and welcomed him. It was when they raised their heads did they notice his regal looks. The Lord was wearing A raven black coat with gold linings and black pants. The shirt he wore was also black, with multiple leather straps and a round collar. He also wore studded boots. His hair was tied in a low ponytail for the occasion. They were all left for a loss of words.

"I see that the festivities have already begun! Do you really have to be that formal?" he asked casually. "This is an occasion for us to relax and celebrate, get drunk, rattle on throughout the night, dance mindlessly and have hangovers….seems you guys still have a lot to learn. Probably I should've gotten some humans as well….the one we have here is too straight for all this" A vein popped in Frankenstein's forehead.

"I hope you're enjoying the clothes _I_ prepared for you _specially_ " he said sarcastically. The Lord smiled nervously.

"Taking advantage of Raizel's absence, are we? Speaking of which, where IS he? I really hope he hasn't lost he way again, even though we're doing this right inside his house" he wondered sweatdropping. "And my daughter isn't here either"

"Sorry for being late, father" came an apologetic voice from the entrance. "I was escorting Raizel here, he got lost". Erga Kenesis Di Raskreia walked in, accompanied by Cadis Etrama Di Raizel, and that very sight didn't fail to captivate those in the hall. Raskreia looked stunning, with her hair tied neatly in a bun, mascara highlighting her sharp eyes, with perfect red lips and a glittery blood red dress and heels. Raizel wasn't any less of a sight either, with his smartly slicked back raven black hair, matched only by his black coat and pants, with a studded white shirt for good measure. He also wore a blood red scarf which made him look all the more regal. There were 'ooh's' and 'wows' being thrown around here and there, and once again, like with the Lord, everyone offered their respects with a light bow.

"Ah Raskreia, you're finally here! You look stunning!" complimented the enigmatic Lord. "You too Raizel, you both look really good together!" he said, patting them both.

"As do you, Lord" replied the Noblesse in kind. Raskreia blushed lightly.

"Seriously, how do you manage to lose the way to your own house? You never fail to amaze me" said the Lord, nodding his head.

"Was this all….done by you?" he asked uncertainly, looking at the halls of his own house which now felt foreign and alien.

"Ah, this wasn't my handiwork, you have Frankenstein to thank for that. Splendid, isn't it?" smiled the Lord. But Raizel was still taking in the various things that lay before him.

"Master, you're here" acknowledged the scientist, accompanied by Gejutel and Rayga. "I hope this is to your liking" he asked, bowing.

"You have done a splendid job, Frankenstein" replied the Noblesse solemnly, which immensely pleased the blond.

"Well come on then! Let's go party!" suggested the Lord, and they dispersed.

The place was now filled with chatter and the sounds of dancing footsteps, as everyone went ahead and either occupied themselves with socializing with others, and those who were in the mood after some drinking, participated in the ball once they found a partner. In one corner, a young Karias, heir to the leader of the Blerster clan, was trying to put on the moves on Rozaria, the heir to the leader of the Elenor clan. The latter was unimpressed at his 'crass' behavior to say the least, and scowled heavily whenever he started reciting love poems.

"Please stop behaving in such a manner, especially in the presence of the family leaders, Karias Blerster. Now, if you'll excuse me!" she said irritably, and gave a small bow to go be with her father.

"Son, you should stop this foolish behavior, as a noble, this does not look good on the heir of the Blerster family" said Krasis Blerster sternly.

"Even you're like this now pops? Seriously, the nobles are too serious with everything" he said with a smug expression.

"Karias…please understand…as a noble who is next in line to be the family leader…."started Krasis, but Karias turned a deaf ear.

"Am I interrupting?" came a voice, and Krasis saw the Lord of the nobles addressing him.

"Ah Lord!" he said said immediately, and knelt down.

"Now now, this is a joyous occasion. Don't be so tense. Anyways, what's the matter? Anything that your son did?" inquired the eccentric Lord.

"Ah 'tis of no concern, Lord. I was taking some time to discipline him. He was behaving inappropriately with the young daughter of the Elenor clan leader" he replied apologetically.

"Hey now pops, don't say it in a way that'll be misunderstood! I just asked her to a dance!" he said in denial. "Why was that such a big deal! We're old enough anyways! "

"Whaaa? All this for a simple dance! Really now….your son is already 200 years old isn't he? I don't see the problem….go on then, young Karias, ask her to dance with you one more time, but make sure to mention that I requested this. Then she'll surely go out with you" he winked, much to Krasis's surprise. He watched with a gaping mouth as his son went up to the young lady, who at first scowled, then was shocked after something was said to her, and then hesitantly took his hand with a small blush, and the two participated in the ball along with the others. Further to his surprise, the two actually hit it off quite well, when Rozaria discovered that for someone she had called 'crass' he was quite gentlemanly. The two then became lost in each other's company.

"See! Now that's sweat! I like that one. He likes living his life to his fullest. I did ask you to raise your son so that he doesn't become too serious. You did quite well, Krasis!" he said appreciatively, patting Krasis in the shoulder, who swelled with pride.

"Lord,I have a bad feeling about this. I'm not sure how the leader of the Elenor family will feel about this" said Gejutel, sweatdropping.

"If the Lord has said it would be okay, I'm willing to trust his word" said Rayga with no doubt in his mind. "And besides, Lord gave permission, so I don't think the family leader will have any problems"

"Atleast you guys are way better than the Ru family, I mean that guy came here with his training clothes. I really have no words" said Lord deadpanned, pointing towards the said family leader, who was indeed in his training attire, standing completely stiff with no clue as to what he should do. His attire showed off his impressive build, causing him to be blocked by the numerous women that surrounded him.

"Atleast he's getting the girls" chuckled the Lord, taking a sip from the chalice of wine he was holding. The family leaders sighed.

"What is this drink, Lord?" asked Rayga, as he took one sip of his own, grimaced at the bitter taste of it, but seemed to savor it nonetheless.

"It's a beverage called Wine. It's very common for the higher class amongst humans to consume this drink. It's pretty extravagant for the humans. Supposedly it helps calm the nerves and forget about any troubles you have. I do feel a bit better relieved of my mental stress, to be honest" came the reply.

"I see. I must admit, I too feel a bit lightheaded. But Frankenstein warned me not to consume too much, otherwise we may lose more than our head is what he told" cautioned Rayga. "So I'll stop here"

"Lord, where is the princess? Is she not with you?" asked Gejutel curious.

"Now that you mention it, I don't see her anywhere either. Where could she be…." Trailed off the enigmatic noble, his eyes scanning across the room. Then he saw a figure by a window, staring off into the things beyond. Lord sighed, having a good clue as to who that might be.

"Looks like I'll have to motivate him somehow…" he bagan, but stopped midway his pat when he saw the person he was looking for making her way to the solitary noble. She was looking down nervous, and the Noblesse had a confused look on his face. Then, he smiled, took her hand and slowly started swaying and striding. His movements were clumsy at first, but after quick sentences from his female partner, his movements became more in sync and rhythmic with hers. She had a constant blush on her face, and he too, was wearing a blithe look on his face. The Lord, who was observing this, had the biggest grin on his face. But he wasn't the only observer. Frankenstein was looking at this scene as well, beside the leader of the Loyard clan.

"He appears quite happy, don't you think?" he asked. Frankenstein just grinned in response.

" _Master….to think that a day would come when I can see you wear such a contended expression….truly, Fairy Tail has accomplished something that neither I nor anyone here could ever do. The princess too…I never imagined she would be such a positive presence for Master….."_ and with these thoughts, he downed another glass of wine.

Following the conclusion of the occasion, the only people left were Lord, Raizel and Raskreia. The clan leaders left one after the other, mostly after each one noticed that they mentally exhausted, being in such a huge social gathering. Frankenstein then immediately proceeded to clean up, not even stopping to say goodbyes to those remaining. The clan leaders wished Raizel good health, and departed to their respective households.

"Aah~~today was really fun! We ought to do this quite often, what do you say?" asked Lord, still a little bit of the enthusiasm left in him.

"I must admit…this was quite pleasing" he said monotonically. Raskreia nodded too. The lord beamed.

"Well anyways, I'm dead tired. I'll be off then! Give Frankenstein my regards for everything. You both get some rest as well" he said, waving good bye and proceeding to the door. Now, it was just the two of them, standing inside Raizel's room, while Frankenstein was still busy with the clean-up.

"Raizel…..thank you for accepting my request today" she said with a small smile.

"Think nothing of it.I too, found your company enjoyable" came the swift reply.

"So this is where you normally stay?" she asked, and the noblesse nodded in the affirmative. She then noticed the room itself. In the entire mansion, this room was the only one that seemed to be in regular use. There were a couple of book shelves, a wardrobe and the most noticeable feature was the big window looking out towards the forest and beyond.

"Is that…where you observe the outside world from?" asked Raskreia with a sad tone.

"Yes"

"I heard from Frankenstein…..why not see the world from the outside? Surely no one would stop you from doing so?" she inquired, to which Raizel gave a small smile. Raskreia watched with a questioning look.

"Frankenstein asked me the same question long back. For me, observing this world through this window is enough. I have everything I need here" he replied solemnly.

"Then, would you mind if I wanted to watch this scene with you? Just this once?" Again, the noblesse nodded in the positive. And just like that, the two stood still, letting themselves a view of the world through the window and observing the forest, the hills and the stars. They stood there for what seemed like hours, with a silent understanding between them, and once again, Raskreia felt something she hadn't felt since the passing of her late mother. Although the feeling was not as strong, it was there nonetheless, even if only a tiny bit.

"This is not bad…..it is really calming to the mind and brings a sense of peace" she said closing her eyes. Then she turned towards him.

"Thank you for sharing this with me, and also for everything before. So let me also give you something" she said, closing in on him and lightly giving a small peck with her lips to his cheek. She swiftly turned, and made her way out.

"Good night!" she said hurriedly and left after giving him one last look. Raizel stood there with a shocked expression on his face, still thinking about their last conversation, his face now lightly red.

"Thank you" he muttered softly.

* * *

 **That's it for now! I wanted this chapter to focus more on the aspect of the normal lives that nobles don't get to enjoy, away from all that fighting. Also for building upon the relationship upon those two. Hope you liked it! My first time trying a romance setting, and I must say, I'm satisfied atleast. Next up, the story will return to the normal arcs of fairy tail. Regarding the new arc, I wasn't planning to start it right away, just wanted to introduce the setting first, and then build upon it as and when the nobles and mages get along in FT. It's gonna be a MAJOR arc, so I wanna make sure to properly build that arc. From the next chapter onwards, I'm gonna be having a new separate section, called the 4** **th** **wall café, for different 4** **th** **wall characters to interact in the backstage, rather than in the main body of the chapter. Anyways, thanks for reading and I'll see you next time!**


	10. Chapter 10: - Invitation to the beach

**Sorry for taking so long for the update, I was busy with drawing some request characters on my deviantart page. I was so taken aback to the fact that I got requests that I completely forgot about writing my story. Anyways, this chapter will begin with the Tower of Heaven arc. (Yup, I'm skipping Loke's arc. Doesn't mean it didn't happen at all, just that since the events don't really deviate from how it happened originally, I don't see the point of writing it again. It just took place off screen). After that will be the Battle of Fairy Tail arc, which will then be followed by the events of the new arc I'm introducing. Both the Tower of Heaven and the Battle of Fairy Tail will involve the nobles as well, so that's why they aren't off screen.**

* * *

 **Replies to Reviews: -**

 **SleeplessForest27 : - Thanks!**

 **Dxhologram : - I'm glad you liked it! I'm planning for the relationship to happen and progress gradually itself. It would be weird otherwise**

* * *

 **Chapter 10: - Invitation to the beach resort**

10 days had passed since the departure of the nobles. The guild was now almost renovated, save for a few paint jobs here and there. The only noticeable changes were that Loki, who was recently revealed to be one of the 12 zodiac spirits, Leo was missing and a new shining key hung around Lucy's waist. Taking Frankenstein's departing advice to heart, many took towards early morning training sessions and sparring matches; the guild saw an increase in the jobs taken by the members as well, which immensely pleased the master. It helped restore the declining quality of the requests they had been getting. Yesterday had been especially tiring, and he was quite annoyed at the rude awakening that morning. The sounds of the female knight's practice sessions made for quite the wake up call. Yawning heavily, Makarov made it to the specialized training zone incorporated recently when they finished rebuilding the guild after phantom's attack. Still in his PJ's, he bore witness to Mira, Erza, Gray, Natsu, Lucy, Elfman, Azlack, Bisca, Max, and a few others already up and active. The training ground was big enough to allow half a dozen to train comfortably, hence the guild members would take turns for their practice sessions, while the others watched from the bar. This time, it was Erza in her heartz kreuz armor, sparring against Mira who was trying her to use her Satan Soul. Even with all her training sessions with Erza, she could only transform her arms, very similar to how her brother was some time back. Nevertheless, she proved to be quite adept in holding out her own against the red haired beauty. Their matches were such spectacles, that the others in the grounds would often stop their own activities to catch a look. The members usually worked together in pairs, and would sometimes switch from their regular partners. Erza and Mira sometimes trained together, whenever the latter felt the need to test her transformation level. Otherwise, Natsu and Gray used to spar against Erza, with Lucy sometimes joining in with the red head. The strauss siblings usually hung out together, Elfman too helping out Mira as much as he could, but would often hold back against his sister, which sometimes bothered the white haired beauty. He was absent from the guild today, having taking rest to recover from the previous training sessions with his sister. The sharpshooter duo made the obvious appearance at the shooting range, with targets being put up at various distances. They were also enchanted so as to shrink or enlarge the bull's eye as they saw it necessary for training. Naturally, Makarov put up a barrier to make sure no damages reached the vicinity of the inside of the guild, but Erza and Mira would often come real close in doing so.

"Phew~~ That was quite productive" gasped titania, stretching her hands.

"Seems like I still can't transform my body further than my arms" remarked Mira, disappointed.

"Compared to your power before, you've come a long way. Even with just 2 arms, you're still formidable" consoled the red head. "Atleast it's not as bad as those two" she pointed out facepalming herself. The fire dragon slayer and the ice mage were lost in their own version of 'training', but anyone could tell how it was going.

"I thought we agreed not to use anything except our own attacks! Then what the hell was that, throwing a table at me?! Does _anything_ ever stay in that volatile head of yours?!" screamed Gray.

"Yeah?! Then what about that spear you threw at me earlier you shirtless snowman!" hissed Natsu.

"Those are part of my powers!" argued the ice mage. Mira sweatdropped watching the entire scene.

"Tch, whenever those two try _anything_ nothing comes out of it" said the guild master, nodding his head.

"Maybe I can help then" came a familiar voice.

"This voice….Frankenstein?!" exclaimed the old mage, turning around.

"Training?" he questioned. Two more figures appeared behind him.

"Uh…yes, they've taken up the task to better themselves every morning after the parting advice you gave them" explained Makarov.

"But from the looks of it…..hmmm how should I put it, the place looks too peaceful for it to be a training ground" noted the blond scientist.

"But wait a minute…..how come you're here? I thought you returned to your home world" wondered Makarov.

"Master wanted to come back here, saying that he missed the noise and activity of the guild, so naturally I came along with him. This time, Raskreia wanted in as well, so she's back as well" said Frankenstein in a matter of factly way. The master gave a nod of understanding.

"Ah, glad to have you both back, Raizel, Raskreia!" grinned the master.

"Likewise" smiled Rai.

"We'll be staying here for a bit longer this time" mentioned the noble lady.

"I see….then I think you better look for places to stay somewhere in the town during your stay here. I doubt Porlyusica would be okay with you guys hoarding over at her place again" shuddered the old master.

"Thank you. Don't worry, we would hate to impose on her as well, so we would be looking for somewhere to stay in the town anyways" smiled Frankenstein.

"Oh and if Raskreia wishes, there is a provision for her to stay at the girl's dormitory. The rent is really low, and she would have some familiar company as well, since a lot of our female members stay there currently" suggested the master.

"I see….very well, I shall think about it" replied the said noble.

"Anyways, getting back to the matter at hand, I suppose I better intervene here" sighed the blond, entering the grounds. Rai and Raskreia on the other hand chose to stay back at the bar, helping themselves, or rather, being helped to some fine cups of morning tea. In the grounds, the fighting between the fire dragon slayer and the ice mage had reached an uncomfortable level.

"Argh, that's it!" raged the pink haired mage, charging his fists.

"Bring it on you turd!" challenged the ice mage, covering his fists in ice. But before either of them could do anything, they could feel themselves being picked up by a pair of hands, with a heavy sigh.

"You call this training? Looks like I have to educate you about some basics" said the commanding voice.

"Frankenstein!" chimed Natsu cheerfully.

"We've missed you, old man!" replied Gray in the same tone.

"Perfect! Just the person I was waiting for!" grinned Erza, running towards him, Mira following closely behind.

"So, this is where you train normally?" inquired the scientist in a confused tone.

"Um yeah? Something the matter?" asked Mira. Frankenstein gave another sigh. "This place should look like a battlefield, but instead looks like a playground. I'd say that you guys could kick this up a notch. Let me see….I know! Why don't you all attack me at the same time, and then you'd find out for yourself"

"A..all of us at once? Are you sure?! These are the most powerful mages in FT! And with Mira and Erza here as well…."

"Gah!" shrieked Natsu, 2 spikes protruding from his arms and torso.

"Why are you just standing there?" smirked the blond.

"Hey, that's playing dirty!" protested the pink haired slayer.

"You're abilities may be top tier, but you all lack something very basic" he tutored "If you don't attack me like your life depends on it, you'll **die!"** he thundered, sending a shiver down everyone's spine.

"Damn, have no choice!" said Gray, clenching his teeth. " **Ice make, lance!** " Multiple flowing ice spears sped towards the blond butler. The latter avoided them all with lithe movements. A red haired figure then sped towards him, aiming few strikes with her swords. Frankenstein simply caught each blow with his hands, pushing away her sword in the last swing.

"Let's see how you handle this!" declared Natsu. " **Fire dragon's roar!** " A raging pillar of fire shot from the pink haired slayer's mouth, aimed at Frankenstein; Unfazed, his smiled, almost in amusement and jumped some 20 ft in the air so fast, that not even Mira or Erza could track his movements. Almost planning it this way, he threw exactly 3 spears before breaking his fall by using the pink haired slayer as a cushion.

"Huh, where did he go?" wondered the red haired knight, and felt a sharp pain in her leg, same with Mira and Gray.

"Gah!"

"Argh!"

"Kreugh!"

The three stumbled backwards, clenching the places where his spears pierced them. Natsu struggled to pick himself up from the dirt. From the bar, Rai sighed, witnessing the difficult nature of his servant.

"Why couldn't you attack me even once with the 4 of you attacking me?" he asked.

"You're pretty strong.." commented Natsu.

"No, that's not it. I wasn't even using a sliver of my full power. It's very simple. You don't have the intent to kill whenever you engage an enemy. You hold you're your strength unconsciously, hoping to just defeat your foe rather than to kill. Remember, your enemies wont have the same mercy you do. It's either your life or theirs, and it's up to you to decide which one matters the most, the lives of your comrades or the life of your enemy. When gray attacked me, the three of you simply stood by, attacking me one by one rather than combining your attacks. It would take me almost zero effort to handle whatever you manage to throw at me." He explained.

"Fighting like that is dishonorable!" argued Erza. "Overpowering someone by sheer numbers.."

"Oh? Honor you say? I have no use of something like that. It wont help me to protect myself or anyone for that matter. Someone once said 'Stand in the ashes of the trillion dead souls and ask if honor matters. The silence is your answer'" he stated. The red head gaped with her mouth slightly open, struck by the depth of the meaning of the sentence.

"Of course, I'm not saying that fighting dirty is the way to win, it's just that when the time comes, you should have the resolve to do what is necessary, otherwise you'd be left with something that is irreversible" he said. "Anyways, apart from your performance as a whole, there are a few places where each of you could improve on your own right. Starting with Natsu, all I have to say is that with offence being your greatest forte, you really should stop being so obvious in charging head first into your enemies. That's the first thing anyone expects you to do, so you should work on giving thought to your actions beforehand. Gray, you weren't all that bad, and actually aimed at my vital spots. But still, you really need to work on that habit of spelling out your moves. That completely defeats the purpose, and makes your attacks slower. Erza, yet again, you're clearly above those two, and clearly one of the most skilled mages here. But the same holds true for you as well. You have swords, weapons used to cut and slay. Yet, it's sharpness is dulled if you don't attack like you mean it. The way of a swordsman is blood. Nothing changes that. Without that resolve, you may as well be swinging a reverse bladed weapon. And Mira…..you didn't do anything, so I cant say much. But I CAN see that you're too soft, unlike Erza here. Kindness is a rare trait, but one not deserved for some. Keep that in mind" he advised, and each one kept to themselves, reflecting on the things that he told them.

"Frankenstein, if you don't mind, can we join in as well?" asked the voice of the blonde celestial mage.

"I would like some tips too" chimed Cana.

"Same with us" came the united voices of Azlack and Bisca.

"Alright….why don't you all come at me again. This time, keep in mind what I've told you. Don't hold back worrying about me, I'm more than capable of handling myself." he suggested.

"If you insist" came the reply, and the ice mage swiftly crossed his arms in a crossing motion, and multiple icicles sprouted from the ground at Frankenstein's feet. He quickly sidestepped and intended to pierce him with a spike, but found the need to parry a flurry of strikes from the red haired mage. Again, he used his speed to avoid them, but saw another attack incoming from the other side. The white haired beauty combined her strikes with her transformed arms with Erza, the two of them simultaneously attacking Frankenstein at his sides. With his powers sealed, he found himself in a tense position, especially considering how Mira's arms were emanating quite the magical power and Erza was using her Black Wing Armor. Any hits from either side were dangerous. In a desperate movement, he punched the torso's of the two, sending them. Concentrating, he sent multiple spikes towards Erza, Mira and Gray. Next came an offensive from Lucy, more exactly from her spirit Loki, who used his regulus magic to deliver a few punches, which the blond scientist retaliated with his own dark energy. Intercepting another attack from Gray, he shielded himself with an enclosure of his sinister aura, and caught the whip attack from Lucy. Sensing his mistress in trouble, Loki dove forward to free Frankenstein's grip on Lucy. Azlack, Bisca and Cana remained in the background, and using this opportunity, they aimed sniper shots and flying tarot cards respectively at his hands. They made contact with the shield but were unable to break through. Mira charged up her demonic aura in her fists and attacked the aura covering Frankenstein with her max force. Frankenstein doubled back unhurt, but shook nonetheless. Taking this chance, Natsu aimed to finish it by closing the distance using his Fire Dragon's wings, and then spinning after enclosing himself in a flaming inferno. His sword horn attack was completely out of the corner of his eye, and caught him a little off guard. Frankenstein saw the attack too late, but was able to somehow conjure up another shield in time, minimizing the damage. When the smoke cleared, they saw him with a satisfied expression, his clothes singed, but he himself was practically unhurt. Save for dust and dirt marks here and there.

"Impressive….now this is more like it. I nearly came close to unsealing my powers. At this rate, you may even be able to match up to me. Anyways, from today, I'll hold personal sparring sessions; this will help me analyze each of your strengths and weaknesses accordingly and I can help you out with whichever areas you are lacking." He said, dusting off his clothes.

" _All of us attacking together and he's completely unfazed…..and he claims that his powers are sealed?! Truly master was right in promoting them to S Class"_ thought Erza amazed.

" _He reminds me of Gildarts"_ thought Gray.

" _I can't believe it….even though he only saw us fighting once, he was able to conjure up individual tactics for each of us, not to mention how he knew how to counter each of us as well….remarkable"_ noted Mira mentally.

"Phew, that was taxing, I really won't mind taking a break" said Lucy stretching her arms. "Speaking of which, there are these coupons to the beach resort that Loki left behind. I wonder if we could go there now….a trip to the beach would be nice. Say, he left many do any of you want to come along?" she asked, looking around.

"Sounds like fun!" grinned Natsu.

"I've never stayed in such a high class hotel!" said Gray excited.

"I'll have to take care of Elfman, so I'll have to decline" said Mira sweetly.

"We have some errands to get to, so…thanks for the offer anyways!" apologized Azlack and Bisca.

"I totally would've come, but I too have some work" said Cana, but something about the she said it seemed suspicious. " _Hehe, with these guys gone, it'll be easy to hit the booze stash tucked away in the cellar"_

"Why are you guys still standing around, if you'd like, I can give you a ride" offered Erza, already in her swimwear and dragging around a mountain of luggage, beach accessories and inner tubes.

"That's way too fast!" shouted Lucy and Gray in unison, their jaws dropping and eyes popping comedically.

"What about you, Frankenstein? Wouldn't you three like to join in as well?" inquired the celestial mage.

"Huh? A trip to the beach?" questioned the blond, somewhat out of focus. "Hmm…"

"Come on! It'll be really fun! Have you guys ever been to the beach before?" asked the red head.

" _Master and Raskreia have never been outside Lukedonia…..this would be a good opportunity to give them the life they deserve…"_

"Alright! Count us in as well! We'd be glad to give you company!" he smiled, which also lifted the spirits of the others as well. "Ok then, I'll go get master and Raskreia" he said, and the others nodded.

* * *

 **At the bar upstairs**

Makarov was still filled with amazement from the sparring session that Frankenstein showcased.

"Has he always been like that?" asked the master looking at Raizel.

"What do you mean?"

"He doesn't like seem someone who goes easy on anyone, even on people he knows…but even then, without them knowing, he helps them out. He also seems eager to do anything new and likes to explore new possibilities" wondered the old master.

"That's how Frankenstein has always been. By his very nature, he was able to become a brilliant scientist, always looking for new knowledge, exploring, researching solitarily in his labs. It brought him great joy in discovering new things and possibilities, the opportunity to put them into practice. He's never met humans for a long time, ever since he came to my mansion. Meeting them here, he probably feels very happy. Most times it looks like he's hurting those near him, but he always has the best of intentions, and there is always some meaning behind his actions" assured the Noblesse. Hearing this made Makarov look at Frankenstein with pride. The person in discussion made his way to the three, with the intent of asking something.

"Frankenstein, thank you for taking the time to help them out. I was worried when you attacked them like that, but now I know I have nothing to worry about" he grinned.

"Ah, it's beneficial to me too, coming here…..gives me the chance to learn about a lot of things…and besides, there wasn't really much I could've done back where I live" he said satisfactorily, confirming what Raizel told Makarov before. "Anyways, master, Lucy there wants to invite us all to a trip to the beach. It will be really entertaining. We should accept, master"

"What's a beach?" asked Rai and Raskreia in unison.

"Wait, you mean to tell me both of you have never seen a beach? What about the sea?" asked Makarov surprised.

"What's a sea?" asked Raskreia, with Raizel having heard the word from his friend Muzaka long time back.

"Is it that large body of water with lots of sand about?" inquired the noblesse "Muzaka would often tell me tales about his trips to the seas"

"Yes, that's right! The beach is like a stretch of land along the sea. It'll be a lot of fun! I'm sure you'll like it" he suggested.

"No way! You mean to tell me there exists a place where there are huge puddles of water?!" said Raskreia in disbelief.

"Calling it a puddle would be an understatement. I think it's better if you just watch it with your own eyes" suggested Frankenstein.

"Alright! It's settled then! Raizel, let's go to the beach! You to Frankenstein, come along!" she said excited.

"You don't have to tell me twice"

* * *

 **And so**

The group of 4 mages and one cat/exceed completely drowned themselves in the atmosphere of the sea spray and sandcastles. Lucy was wearing a checkered swimsuit, while Erza donned a glittery one. Natsu 'equipped' himself with a swimming trunk with a flame design, and Gray felt comfortable in his regular ones. The sight surprised not just Raskreia and Rai, but also Frankenstein, for it was not the sea but the attire that Lucy and mainly Erza were wearing. He did not know what kind of personality Lucy had, but he expected Erza to be someone who was highly formal and reserved, kinda like a noble. Seeing her in swimwear made his thoughts shift. He could only look deadpanned at them. Rai and Raskreia were mesmerized at the sight of the huge expanse of salty water, the blazing sun and the endless cover of pale yellow sand in front of them. Intrigued, the two made it to the edge of the water so clear, you could see till the bottom.

"Hey you two, why in the world are you still in suits?! I thought you guys would change after we got down here, but doesn't seem like it" said Natsu, eyes popping.

"Aye!" agreed happy the cat.

"Looks like they don't know about swimwear, seeing as how they've never been to a beach before" sighed the celestial mage.

"Aah, how sad a fate it is, never having enjoyed a day at the beach" voiced Erza in a lament-like tone.

"You cant be serious…" said Gray in disbelief. "

"Speaking of which, _why_ are you all wearing such revealing and disgraceful clothing out in the open in front of men" asked Raskreia to the girls, remembering what the Lord had told her before.

"Huh?! Revealing?! Is it really?" asked Lucy uncertainly.

"But this is what anyone wears in the beach normally…" said Erza nonchalantly.

"Oy, old man, you really sure you don't want to be here?" asked Natsu deadpanned, but noticed that the blond scientist was pretty much in the same state for all different reasons.

" _What am I supposed to tell master now…Lord did ask us to get along with them, so I guess I have no choice…"_ He took the two to a side and told them softly.

"Master, Lord did ask us to go along with the traditions and culture of this world. These swimsuits are ideal clothing for going for a swim. We should just get along"

"Alright Frankenstein, if you say so" said Raizel.

"This is embarrassing…..for the heir of the lord to be wearing….. _that"_ scorned Raskreia.

"I know it's not the most elegant wear, but please bear with it, who knows, you might even have fun" said Frankenstein in a difficult voice. The noble heir simply scowled.

* * *

 **Soon enough**

A particular spot had somehow become the most spectacular view in the whole beach. Erza, Lucy, Gray and Natsu with happy included watched, half-sweatdropping and half in amusement, the attention that a shirtless Frankenstein and Rai and Raskreia with a swinsuit were getting. Frankenstein wore a purple swimming trunk, which went amazingly well with his physique and blond hair shimmering in the beach sunlight. Rai on the other hand wore blood red trunks, which matched his ruby red eyes. Raskreia let her hair loose, and wore a kind of bathing suit, with ruby red jewels adorning it. Needless to say, whenever she looked at Rai, she would avert her gaze, blushing away. Natsu and Gray watched with wide eyes when they first saw Raskreia, and Erza and Lucy had their breaths taken away, and their hearts skipped several beats upon witnessing Rai and even Frankenstein. But soon after the news spread of the dazzling beach 'hotties', troves of males would try to gather around Raskreia, trying to sneak in a look. This was all the more contemplated with the incredible sight of all the beach girls trying to cope a feel of the blond scientist and the noblesse. The blond would get annoyed and drive them away, but soon a large crowd approached both males and females included which he knew would be impossible to deal with as is.

"This is…..quite the scene isn't it…." Commented Erza deadpanned.

"Should we do something about it" asked Gray uncertainly.

"Hey why don't you strip, that way you can divert their attention" suggested Natsu, earning him a comedic punch to the pace, the celestial mages' face wearing a scowl.

"That isn't funny, natsu!"

Having had enough, Frankenstein used his mind control to persuade the crowd to leave them alone.

"Frankenstein"

"Yes master?"

"Did you really have to use mind control to disperse them?" Frankenstein started sweating comically now.

"It was the only way" he said, a small smile on him.

"I find disobeying Lord's orders about not using our powers carelessly slightly concerning" he said nonchalantly, which caused him to sweat even more.

"It shall not happen again, master" he tried to assure his master.

"What are we even doing here?" questioned Lucy to herself and to the others.

With all this having been done, they finally got some personal space and finally went on to try out the different activities they had in mind. First, they dived head first into the cool waters of the sea; splashing each other, swimming, and in gray's case, using the water to craft surfboards for others to try. After much insisting from the mages, the noble trio finally felt persuaded enough to go along with them. Raskreia at first felt shy to try splashing water on rai, and decided to try it out after mustering enough courage. She wasn't disappointed, as the water dripping from his hair was an eye candy worth every jewel. Erza and Lucy thanked her later on. Rai, with a straight face retaliated with a splash of his own, soaking Raskreia dripping wet. Now, it was the boy's turn to enjoy the view. After this, they all competed in a game of whacking the watermelon, but after witnessing Frankenstein cave in several inches of the ground along with the watermelon with his first hit, they made sure to place the melons as far away from the denizens of the beach as possible, including themselves. Next came beach volleyball, which scared the mages the most, but in a comedic manner. The speeds with which each noble was passing the ball was insane; the ball was clearly going supersonic, and the nobles were clearly taking this the wrong way and way too seriously. Erza equipped her adamantine armor, Lucy had Loki take her place and Gray crafted an ice shield for himself, while Natsu had flames on his fists constantly. Frankenstein, Raizel, Gray and Natsu took one side, the rest took the other side. Happy acted as a referee. It got so intense that Frankenstein had to conjure up a temporary shield to prevent the ball from exploding and also another in their vicinity to prevent the same from hitting the others. After about an hour's play, the mages retired themselves to sunbathing, which the nobles followed suit. With their enhanced anatomy, their bodies didn't tan in the sun, something which they all found interesting. Utterly exhausted, Natsu, Gray, Happy and Lucy fell asleep sunbathing, hence Frankenstein shielded them from the sun's rays after sometime.

" _Today was a blast…Rai and Raskreia…they're usually so quiet and reserved but today, they looked contented and happy…it's days like this that wash away your worries…."_ Thought Erza with a content expression.

" _Aah…it's been a while since I had time to relax like this….for what it's worth, this wasn't all that bad"_ admitted the blond scientist to himself, after looking at Raizel's and Raskreia's peaceful expressions and took a siesta himself. Nearby, Rai and Raskreia lay next to each other, staring into the sky.

"Hey raizel" called out the noble heir.

"Yes?"

"Is this how the humans in our world are as well?" she asked.

"I don't know…..I have never been to the human world before, and I have only seen one human before, and that too it was Muzaka's daughter….perhaps the Lord or Frankenstein would know better"

"The werewolf lord's daughter was human?!" she asked astonished.

"That's right…she was the child of the human woman that Muzaka took in". This shocked her even more.

"What happened then? After Muzaka-nim disappeared…."

"Muzaka was taking care of his daughter after her mother passed away, they lived together for a few years, as close as they could be. His daughter, Ashline never even knew that Muzaka was her father. A war then broke out amongst the humans in which she was caught in the crossfire. Enraged over the loss of his daughter, he vowed to destroy all of humanity. As the noblesse, I couldn't let him destroy humanity and hence I had to step in and engage my friend in a battle, the outcome of which you already know" he said sadly.

"I'm sorry for bringing up such a painful thing…" she apologized. "To be forced to fight those whom you hold dear…..in that sense, I'm glad that your duties as noblesse are not required here…." Raizel smiled in response. "In any case…..I must admit..I never have felt so lively as I have today…..I got to see a lot more colors in my life than I have ever….and it's all thanks to you guys" she said warmly.

"And therein lies your answer…..this is why the Lord is the kind of person he is" answered Raizel "We nobles live far longer than any human…..and this is the case for us especially. Hence, it is not how long we live, rather how we chose to live out our lives that matters" Both of them allowed the atmosphere between them to seep into their hearts, and closed their eyes in tranquil and peaceful sleep, something that they hadn't done so in many lifetimes.

* * *

 **4** **th** **wall café**

In the dusty old café called the 4th wall café, an interesting group of characters were having a lively conversation. Seated were Son Jiho, Kwangsu Lee the authors of Noblesse and Hiro Mashima, the author of Fairy Tail. Keeping their promise before, they were holding beers in their hands, and a new guest walked in. The blond scientist, bearing a grin and still in his swim trunks, casually grabbed a glass of wine and occupied a seat for himself.

"You!" remarked Son wildly. "We just got done talking about you and here you are in person!"

"How the hell are you even able to break the 4th wall?! I didn't write something like this!" questioned Kwangsu.

"Well too bad you made me more intelligent than you thought, and breaking the 4th wall is as natural as it gets" he smirked in response.

"Poor hiro here is gonna sober up again" said Lee deadpanned.

"This is why you shouldn't have plot armor in your novels…..what could've been great is ruined by something as illogical as that" said Franky, still with his sadistic grin. "Are you still upset about me killing off that phantom lord guy?"

"He was supposed to live!" protested Hiro.

"Now look here, I aint that evil….this isn't game of thrones after all….he was a scumbag who got what he deserved and besides, in your original story, Makarov's fairy law destroyed Jose's shadow puppets but not the evil mastermind himself? Seems like a plothole to me"

"But…"

"Now listen here dear author-dono….Fairy Tail is a great work, and thanks to it, I could heal my master as well…so I'll help you out. You do realize that just as how FT is famous for its fan base, it's hater base is just as notorious….do you know why?" he asked. Hiro nodded in response, but seemed to know the answer.

"Plot armor and Nakama Power. I mean come on. This isn't some gag manga you know. This is a battle and fantasy manga. You need to have interesting events, deaths of characters, logical battles and outcomes, power ups that are reasonable to explain and so on. Now I'm not saying Noblesse isn't guilty of the same, especially considering the last arc with the werewolves. Both are amazing works, but with a few things that need addressing. I mean, you don't want your ending to be rushed like Bleach do you?" Again, Hiro nodded in the negative. The other two authors were listening attentively as well.

"So if characters need to die, they should remain dead. You cant just bring them back from the dead, you'd need dragon balls for that and no, I don't mean the certain parts of the winged creatures in FT, I mean the wish balls. If someone is outclassed in power, you cant have the power of feelings mixed in. In that case, the villains should get stronger as well, through the power of their negative feelings. Have legit ways of explaining power ups. Then I'm certain you can convert your hater base into your fan base, and it can be a manga that is able to stand toe in toe with the great 3"

"Naruhodo! Arigato Gozaimasu, Frankenstein-san!"

"No problem! We can use this café to discuss issues, and you can help me as well. Now, to you both" he said, turning with Kwangsu Lee and Son Jiho.

"Well, this is where I come from so I don't really have complaints, seeing as how its something where I'm present, so it's gotta be good. My only issue, is that I get tired of following the same pattern of fighting in the arcs of noblesse. Some guys jump in, nobles fight them, they lose, then I 'fight' them, then master steps in and defeats them….you guys should do something about that. I get really annoyed when master has to use his power….maybe next time I'll ask you both to fight instead" he smiled maliciously. The other two started sweating comedically.

"We'll keep that in mind, thanks Frankenstein" they said nervously.

"Well, whatever, the writer should be getting pretty tired, my thanks to him for everything he's done for master and for those who read the story, I'll make sure to make this one interesting till the very end" he smiled and walked out after finishing his wine. The authors watched till he left and breathed a sigh of relief. Their attention was then diverted by someone in a red spandex suit with dual swords and guns, singing.

"~~Hey yeah, I wanna shoot baby~~"

"Who's that? Deadpool?" asked Son.

"Looks like it….I mean this is the 4th wall café, it'd be weird if he wasn't here as well" replied Lee.

"I just hope he isn't part of the story….imagine what would happen if those two meet up" gulped Hiro. All three of them shuddered from the thought.

* * *

 **That's it guys! Hope you liked the chapter! The next chapter will continue with the more serious part of the tower of heaven and will probably conclude with the chapter after that. If at all you feel like sending any fanart for the beach scenes, feel free to do so! I'll feature your work in both my fanfiction story and my art page. And like I said, the 4** **th** **wall café is the new part I wanted to introduce, hope it came out well. Until next time then!**


	11. Chapter 11: - Wraiths from the past

**Sigh…..before the chapter, I would like apologize about 2 things. One, sorry for the delay in the chapter, the thing is, I've been feeling real depressed and lonely lately, I had a bad fallout with my friends, so I've done nothing but sulk in my room for quite a while, and now, I'm feeling a bit better. So I decided to divert my mind with a chapter. After all, at the very least, I didn't want to keep my readers here waiting. I promise I'll do my best to keep this chapter interesting. Secondly, about the 4** **th** **wall café part….Urgh, when I read it again, I facepalmed myself….that was….a real bad move….a BM…..I admit, I experimented with something, it didn't work out so well. So, I'll be removing that. 4** **th** **wall moments wont be completely gone, but they'll be kept short and will be very occasional, which I feel would be the proper way to go about. With that out of the way, this chapter will be more serious, and will focus on the main events of the Tower of Heaven arc. Also, one other thing is that there WILL be some parts focusing not on the fights, but on the mundane daily activities centering around the nobles. The earlier chapters of Noblesse had such moments, which made it fun and enjoyable, different from the rest. It was so nice to see Rai interacting with modern tech. Something that's missing in the chapters of late. Hence I wanted to introduce that element in my works.**

* * *

 **Response to reviews:-**

 **ChunkyFunkyMunky:- Yeah I thought so as well, and about the 4** **th** **wall part, I've answered that in the above section.**

 **SleeplessForest27:- I feel that's the part missing in the recent noblesse chapters….it was about Rai and how he enjoyed daily life…something the authors seem to have forgotten. I'm glad I can introduce elements like that again, and people like it :D**

 **The SENDER and the TRAVELER :- Well, that IS the thing I want to change from the original FT, now that the chapters are done. Don't worry though, since I wont make the Noblesse characters too OP as well, since that would defeat the purpose. They would just solve everything otherwise**

 **eunikecindy8:- Thanks! Sorry for taking so long, like I said, I had some issues.**

 **Dxhologram:- yeah….didnt turn out so well as I thought….anyways…on to the main topic**

* * *

 **Chapter 11: - Wraiths from the past**

Raskreia's peaceful sleep was disturbed by a certain red haired swordswoman with a determined expression.

"Raskreia…you said I could challenge you anytime…well, here I am. Let's give it our best" she said in a polite tone, exquipping to her heart kreuz armor. Natsu, Happy, Lucy and Gray left to spectate the battle. Needless to say, they were excited.

"Very well" replied the female noble, getting up. She too, changed to her normal noble attire after using a tiny bit of her power. This surprised the others, since they were ignorant to the fact that the trio could change outfits as well.

"You have the same power as Erza?" inquired Lucy, surprised.

"Hrm,…let's just say that some of us are able to change outfits as we please, master and I have that power as well….it's not something that I would call an ability to be honest" replied Frankenstein.

"But you surprise me…..do you really think you are ready to face me?" asked Raskreia.

"No….nowhere close….but I need to know, where I stand compared to you when we both go all out" she replied.

"That's understandable….but regrettably, I wont be able to grant your second request" said the female noble. "You see, I'm prohibited from using more than 50% of my abilities"

"And why is that? Is it because I might not be able to take whatever you have to offer?" questioned Titania.

"It's a direct order from our Lord, he has prohibited anyone from our world to use more strength than necessary. I'm not so inexperienced that I would kill someone by _mistake_ " retorted the raven haired noble, slightly annoyed.

" _Ah, I'd almost forgotten what that old man told us before leaving…"_ thought Frankenstein inwardly, deadpanned.

* * *

 **Flashback**

" _What? You wanna go back to Earthland?" asked the eccentric Lord surprised._

" _That's right" replied Raizel monotonically._

" _But this is surprising indeed…..you, who would rather stay cooped up in your house even after me suggesting you to live as you like are now asking me to allow you to leave…" he trailed off. "Anyways, it's not like you need my permission to leave, you are the Noblesse after all…with that being said, it was nice of you to let me know! Is that peacock going along with you as well?" he snickered._

" _Obviously" replied the said human, with a small vein popping._

" _In that case, I want to ask something of you….again, you aren't obliged to obey me in any way, but think of this as a special request from the Lord. Earthland was something that was supposed to be isolated from our world. But circumstances forced the two to intervene. Now, we owe this mage guild Fairy Tail a debt that cant be repaid. So I'm not against us helping them. But still, it would be better for them to be oblivious to our identities and our abilities. So, my request is pretty simple. Restrain your powers. Raizel, you already have the seal I gave you. Frankenstein, if I remember correctly, Raizel here sealed your abilities, right?" The blond nodded in the affirmative. "Well, that's that then. Oh, and perhaps you don't need to keep your strength sealed when the situation calls for it, I'm sure Raizel would undo your seal for you, but your Dark spear is a no go. There's no telling how that crazy lover of yours might behave if you happened to release it/he/her on a magic rich environment like Earthland. And besides, all the enemies that you may encounter there are hardly going to be that strong right?"_

" _Hmm….normally I'd think of how to prove you wrong, but this once, I too seem to like your proposition. But not because I think they should be oblivious to our abilities. If we are staying with them they have the right to know…but with this, it's a good handicap, and it might make battles more enjoyable as well…..also, master's life force wont be used as long as he doesn't remove his seal….so he too, can use his abilities without me or anyone else worrying about master using up his life force." Agreed the scientist._

" _Hoh….it's rare to see you agree with me….anyways, let me confirm something. That blood stone on his seal….it only works in Earthland correct? Refilling his life force as fast as it is being used by drawing from the magic in the air and converting it as his lifeforce correct?" Again, Frankenstein nodded._

" _Then how do you stop it from affecting any living being nearby? Surely any object with magical energy in it would be affected as well?"_

" _I too had that question, but turns out, since the blood stone is so small, it only works in a radius of a few steps. As long as someone isn't in that area, they wont be affected. Also, this only happens if master isn't consciously monitoring it. If master wills it, he is able to selectively absorb energy only from the air, ignoring the rest, thanks to that magic stone or lachrima as they call it. Because the lachrima is present, master can only recover by absorbing magic particles. Hence, if he is here, the whole thing wont work." Explained Frankenstein. "And hence, should master remove his seal, his blood field powers become available to him, but he wont simultaneously recover his life force."_

" _I see…..everything seems to be in order then, I have nothing to worry about. Ok then, you may leave" he said, bidding them goodbye._

" _Lord, please wait a moment" called out a voice, and the form of the heiress of the Lord became visible._

" _Huh, Raskreia? What's up?" he asked casually._

" _Father…I…" she said, stammering quite a bit, which was quite unlike her. "I would like to go along as well" she finished. She expected her father to be surprised, but to her surprise in return, the Lord simply agreed._

" _Oh ok. No problem! But just like them, I would like for you to not use your blood field powers" he reminded._

" _Is it ok really?" she asked uncertainly._

" _I think it would be good experience for you to live amongst humans, but I AM surprised, that you, who is almost like Raizel in terms of social interaction, are even interested in something like this. Have you taken a liking to those humans?" he asked, smiling mischievously._

" _N…no, nothing like that, just that I promised someone that I would train them in swordsmanship, so as a noble, I need to uphold my word" she replied, blushing and looking away._

" _Hahaha, I know, I know, Frankenstein told me about everything that happened there after all" he said laughing "alright, off you go then" he said, with a tender voice._

" _Thank you!" she replied with a slightly more enthusiastic tone, which wasn't missed by the Lord._

 **Flashback end**

* * *

" _Even if she cant use more than 50% of her strength, Erza is still far too inferior to even hit her even once. Still I believe this will be entertaining to watch"_ thought Frankenstein. Raizel's eyes were also fixed on the two.

"Ready?" alerted the red haired mage, readying her own sword.

"Anytime you are" came the swift reply. Sensing that the two were waiting for a signal, Frankenstein took action.

"Begin!"

*swish* The red haired mage disappeared in swift movement, and swung her sword aimed at Raskreia. Not even bothering to use the borrowed sword in her hand, she simply caught the blade with her free hand.

"A direct strike? You disappoint me" she said, but no sooner had she said it, a kick flung at her face, one that was completely avoided by the noble lady due to her inhuman reflexes. Letting go of Erza's sword, she pushed her away using a palm strike. The red head was pushed several steps back. Saying nothing, she leapt in front of her and started delivering a barrage of attacks, strikes from every direction possible. It was an incredible sight, and Lucy, Gray, Natsu and Happy watched with gaping mouths. Strikes harder to even see with their naked eyes, were avoided almost effortlessly by the raven haired beauty. She wasn't even trying. Erza was one of the strongest people they knew, and for someone to spar with her like that was unthinkable. After a few seconds, Erza retreated, with a smile on her face.

"I see…you're not as dull as I thought. With those two attempts, you took the chance to study my movements, speed, my pattern when I avoided your moves, grip strength and so on. Impressive" she commended the red head. "So, what's next?"

" _I cant use any of my more powerful armors like the Amandura Fairy…it'll destroy this entire place otherwise….but I cant think of any others that would be a match for her….I guess the Heaven's wheel IS my only option"_ she surmised. The red haired beauty was surrounded by a golden light, and exquipped to her Heaven's Wheel armor.

"Oh? So that's you magic. Interesting" remarked the raven haired beauty.

"You'll find out soon enough!" she challenged, and summoned roughly 100 swords. Franky and Rai both raised their eyes. " _Oh? Seems like something she learnt after watching me fight"_ he noted mentally.

With a simple movement of her hands, she hurled the 100 swords she summoned towards he target. With simple and efficient movements, Raskreia predicted and avoided the incoming projectiles. But Erza was far from done. Summoning another 100 blades, she positioned them above the unsuspecting Raskreia, and sent them crashing down at her, while the 1st hundred swords were still continuing their assault. A small dust cloud shrouded the entire space.

"There's no way she could've gotten out of that unscathed, right?" asked Lucy.

"Yeah, I mean, this IS Erza we're talking about" said Natsu scratching his head.

"Kukuku….I don't know about that" said Frankenstein, smiling slightly.

"Dropping your guard immediately after that was a mistake, and to assume that you had me as well" said a voice from behind Erza. Startled, she turned back swiftly.

*fwip*

Just millimeters from her throat, Raskreia stopped her blade. She gasped, obviously taken aback with the speed with which she had drawn her sword. She viewed herself competent enough with swords, and yet, even she could not even tell what had happened. She gulped, sweat dripping from her brow, immobilized by the situation.

"And that's that" said Raskreia calmly, handing over the sword to Erza. Without so much as a word, she simply went over to slumped against the ground. Lucy, Gray, Natsu and Happy went over to her.

"Hey, are you alright?! She aimed at your throat right?! Did she cut you?!" asked the celestial mage frantically. After finding out that her injuries were non existent, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"That was intense" mentioned Gray "I've never seen anyone overwhelm Erza like that"

"She's so strong" said Natsu with a tone of admiration.

"Aye!" agreed Happy.

"Anyways, it's getting late, I think we should head back" suggested Lucy. "They're leaving as well" she pointed out.

"So? What do you think?" asked the blond scientist.

"About Erza? She's strong for a human, but naturally with her current strength, I would place her at the level of a noble, but she's got a long way to go before she can stand up to a clan leader or us for that matter. I only needed to use 20% of my strength to end the dual" she said sternly.

"Still, this will be good experience for both of you…..you've never seen this haven't you? Humans that could be so strong…..?"

"That is correct…..it seems that Lord was right after all…" she said.

"Well, I'm just glad it ended well…..should we leave as well? It is getting late after all" suggested Frankenstein. Raizel nodded.

"Today was fun" said Raizel with a small smile.

"Agreed" said Raskreia. Satisfied with the expressions the two were showing, Frankenstein sported a small smile of his own. The trio then proceeded to the resort.

* * *

 **Later that night, Erza's room**

" _Sigh…..today really was a blast all things considered. Those 3 really livened up things as well…..speaking of which; Raskreia…she's so strong, I couldn't even lay a finger on her even with my Heaven's wheel armor…..even if I wasn't going all out, she wasn't at full strength as well, so that evened things out…still, I'm sure one day I can, but for now, I should rest up…"_ recounted the red haired beauty, and dozed off. A multitude of images flooded her dreams. Two lines of slaves being led to a chamber. The images of torture; Chambers of prisons; The feeling of being crushed; The feeling of helplessness; Fear…..and then a voice

" _Erza….in this world, freedom is merely an illusion…."_

The red haired beauty awoke with a violent jerk, her breathing hard and heavy. She examined her arms, and then composed herself.

"A dream…I mustve fallen asleep….I should go meet the others" she said to herself, examined herself in a mirror and feeling insecure, changed to her armor.

"Erza! They've got a casino in the basement! Wanna check it out?" asked an excited Lucy after bursting through her room.

"Meh….I'm not really fond of gambling" replied the red head uncertain.

"Gray and Natsu are already down playing! Frankenstein and those 2 didn't want to join us, so they're still in the room." She said.

"Oh well" remarked Erza and changed into an extravagant outfit. Lucy sweatdropped at the sight, and soon enough the two took off.

* * *

 **Sometime later, with Frankenstein and the others**

A rather loud noise rang throughout the building, and one that couldn't possibly be missed by the nobles. They would've disregarded it initially, since loud noises weren't all that rare when FT was around, but this once in particular alerted them that something was not right.

"Master, this sounded like…" started the blond.

"Let's go, something must have happened to them" said Rai with a serious expression.

The trio rushed to the basement, the source of the disturbance. The shocked faces were standing witness to a disheveled casino, multitude of cards lying on the floor with the moving images of people inside them, the body of Gray pierced and stabbed with multiple wood supports, Lucy who was tied up, a knocked out woman, Natsu with a blank expression on his face and a missing cat and knight.

"What the…" exclaimed Raskreia. She hurried over to Lucy and untied her free. Frankenstein helped up the unconscious woman.

"Some people who turned out to be Erza's old comrades kidnapped her and happy and escaped….one mage trapped all the people in cards while the other shot Natsu in the face…I don't know what else happened…." She breathed.

"DAAAAAH!" roared the pink haired dragon slayer, spewing flames from his mouth. "That square bastard! How could he shoot normal people in the mouth with a gun!"

"I think a normal person would've kicked the bucket already" mentioned Lucy sweatdroppping.

Frankenstein touched Gray's 'body', which caused it to shatter. He was startled at first, but soon realized it was an ice clone.

"I thought as much…but where's the real one...?" he wondered.

"Gray-sama is here!" alerted the blue haired woman, who then turned to something like a puddle, and the body of the ice mage fell out of 'her'.

"Ah…it's that girl from Phantom Lord!" said Lucy out aloud.

"It's Juvia" she replied.

"More importantly, sis you say that he was in your body?!" exclaimed the celestial mage.

"In mine and not your body" rued Juvia back.

"I see…you must be the once that Gray encountered, the water user of phantom Lord. In any case, seeing as how you protected him, I assume you're on the same side now?" asked the scientist, to which she nodded. "Good, that's all I need to know" Gray finally came too, and looked around confused.

"Gray-sama, you're alright" chimed the rain woman.

"Yeah, I could've handled it, but thanks anyways. Anyways, they took Erza and Happy, we've got to go after them! Hey, flame brain, think you could trace them with your nose?" he inquired.

"Yeah, their scent is crystal clear" he replied, completely ignoring the flame brain part in the situation.

"There's a boat moored in the beach, right? We can use that" mentioned Raskreia.

"If they could take Erza, they could be powerful opponents. We have to exert caution" said Rai.

"Oh yeah, now that you mention it, the one who took Erza was different from the other guys, that person was completely cloaked in white, so I couldn't see the face. But all it took was a single blow. It was so fast, that it almost felt like they weren't human. And what's weird was that that person's magic felt really weird, not like the magic I've ever felt from any mage" explained Lucy.

"Strange indeed…..but to find more answers, we need to get to Erza first, although I have a hunch about a few things. But rescuing them takes priority. Let's move out" ordered Frankenstein, and the rest silently followed.

* * *

 **Elsewhere, in a secret laboratory**

"Kukuku…it seems our 'subject' has made contact with those fools" said Maduke, the current Lord of the werewolves. "How is his condition?"

"Everything seems stable for now, and the lachrima seem to be bonding with him with no problems, second elder" said Ignes, the 9th elder of the union.

"I really cant believe the possibilities that this world had to offer…the battle between Muzaka and Raizel-nim was a godsend" said Ragus. "I'm also pleased that you had test subjects to offer, Maduke"

"Through their sacrifice, the clan will acquire much strength….they were weak to begin with anyways, with this we give them a chance to be amongst the warriors of our clan…..hehehehehe"

"And how goes the experiments on White Mist Town?I heard the inhabitants managed to send out requests to mage guilds somehow, despite posting guards there?" questioned the leader of the tardio clan.

"That was nothing but a small hindrance that was taken care of…some fool decided to play hero and paid with his life…but the subjects there got out of control and killed off a few civilians…it seems we still need some improvements before they can act like proper pawns…but this is better…..now, instead of weak villagers, we will have powerful S class mages to use as test subjects when they arrive to investigate the place" remarked Ignes with a proud smirk.

"Heh, finally….I'm getting sick of cutting down useless fodder all the time…..these 'S-classes' might be more entertaining" exclaimed Urokai.

"What of Raizel-nim…?" asked Edian in a lost tone.

"Ah, he is of no concern. Even if he IS here, he should be in no condition to even walk, let alone fight. The only real threat that I would consider is either Frankenstein or Raskreia"

"Are you crazy?! Those two?! That filthy human couldn't possibly be a 'threat'..if I come across him, he'll wish he never went in search of Raizel-nim. As for the lady, even if she is the heir to the Lord, she isn't even a clan leader, and she's still young and inexperienced. They wont be any problem at all" scowled Gradeus.

"I wouldn't underestimate any of them if I were you" cautioned Zarga Siriana.

"After all, Frankenstein did manage to give you that scar" added Roctis. He was immediately grabbed by the collar by a seething Urokai.

"Roctis you dare?!" he raged.

"That wasn't my intention. All that I am trying to say is that we should treat them as real problems rather than ignore them. Else, we may end up regretting it later" he said calmly, shaking off Urokai.

"Hmm…you have a point, father. Very well, I suppose we could prepare something in the event that we have to face them"

"Agreed. We could use any of the S class mage test subjects for that. This way, we could measure their worth as well" added Ragus, smiling. "If that fails, we still have 'him'….the one being who could go toe to toe against even the strongest of us all….and with the new experiments, he will be stronger than ever before…kukukukuku….hahahahahaha"

* * *

 **Somewhere in the middle of the ocean**

"We've been wandering around the ocean aimlessly for sometime now, are you sure we're on track?" questioned Juvia concerned.

"Where the hell are we anyways?!" shouted Gray, looking around.

"Oy Natsu, are you sure we're still in the right direction?" asked Lucy.

"y..yeah.." struggled Natsu, whilst trying not to puke from his motion sickness.

"I can't believe you're in such a pathetic state from just being in a boat" chided Frankenstein, narrowing his eyes. "Anyways, from what I can sense, their energy trails go this way, so yes, we're on track"

"But still, to think a mage like Erza was defeated…." Said Juvia looking concerned.

"Ain't no way she was beaten! You don't know the first thing about her!" protested Gray angrily, scaring the rain woman.

"A..Apologies!"

"Hey now, that's quite immature of you Gray. Compose yourself" scolded Frankenstein. "The truth of the matter shall be known once we reach there"

"And besides….those guys mentioned that they were her nakama…..and let's face it, when it comes to her, no one really knows much" said Lucy, setting a dull mood.

"Hey you guys, there's something visible! It's a tower!" mentioned Lucy and sure enough, surrounding the mist, there was a lone tower in the middle of the ocean.

"So…..that's the tower of paradise huh?" wondered the blond, "Everyone, be on your guard. Whoever took out Erza could be out there at any place, and we still don't know what kind of enemy we are facing" Affirmative nods followed.

" _Erza…Happy….we're coming…..stay alive no matter what…"_

* * *

 **That's it for now! I know the chapter is a bit shorter that I would've liked, but it's been a long time since an update, so I figured I would go for a shorter chapter and an update. This would give me more material and time to update the next chapter faster. Once again, sorry for the late update, hopefully, I can write the next chapter sooner. Next chapter will focus on the fighting in the tower. And yeah….finally Maduke and the others come back into the fray. Like always, thank you so much for reading, the favs, follows and reviews. Don't hold back if you have any questions or would like to point out something I made a mistake with, I'll be more than happy to listen. Thanks again!**


	12. Chapter 12: - Ascending the tower

**Hey guys, just want to leave a small message! Thanks a lot for your support, I feel a lot better now! Thank you so much! If you like this story, I'm also writing one other, which I felt is something the original FT needed. It's called Wendy of the Apocalyspe, a darker storyline of FT after the Tenrou Island arc where everyone except Wendy are dead. She now struggles to live out life in peace, trying to defend it from the black dragon. 7 years past, she gains allies, becomes much stronger and together they need to work together to beat the dragon. This is not very descriptive of the story, if you feel like it, feel free to check it out!**

* * *

 **Response to reviews:-**

 **Greer123:- Thanks a lot!**

 **SleeplessForest27:- haha, they sure will!**

 **Dxhologram:- not just him ;)**

* * *

 **Chapter 12: - Ascending the tower**

"Wow there are a lot of guards" noticed the pink haired dragon slayer.

"No kidding…..but I suppose that's to be expected" added the ice mage. From the nearby shore, the head of the rain woman emerged with a splash sound.

"I discovered another entrance to the tower, it's just a 10 minute dive underwater" she said, getting out of the water.

"Awesome work!" complimented Gray, to which the blue haired woman started teasing Lucy about it. "It's just a 10 minute route underwater, no problem right?" she asked in an obvious tone, to which, Gray, Natsu, Frankenstein, Rai and Raskreia nodded in a similar fashion.

"And why do I happen to be the only one to think that'd be obviously impossible!" remarked Lucy eyes popping.

"Worry not, by wearing this oxygen enforced water sphere, you can breathe even under water" assured Juvia, holding the said sphere in her hand.

"That won't be necessary" said Raskreia, and procured a transparent blood red barrier around them. "That should keep us dry AND safe from any attacks underwater. I'm disappointed that you haven't considered that" she said sternly.

" _It's almost like Erza's right here"_ thought Gray sweatdropping.

Surfacing on the other side, they observed looked around for some sort of entrance.

"Looks like this is the basement of the tower" said Frankenstein.

"Erza's energy seems to be coming from there, it's on the move" said Frankenstein, pointing in a direction.

"Happy's scent is coming from there" said Natsu, pointing elsewhere.

"Hm….that means they're being held separately" said Lucy.

"HEY! WHO THE HELL ARE YOU GUYS?!" shouted someone from atop, alerting everyone the presence of the multitude of guards.

"Aww shit, we've been discovered!" cursed Lucy.

"No choice but to plough through then!" said Gray, readying himself.

"Right!" agreed Juvia.

" _ **Step aside**_ " came a commanding and chilling voice…..no, if anything it felt more like a decree from the gods above. Mere silence filled the area, and the guards felt themselves unable to disobey their body, the noblesse's eyes glowing red; they formed a path, as if paving the way for a king to enter.

"I…incredible…" gasped Juvia.

" _He didn't even do anything!"_ thought Gray wide eyed.

"Let's go" said Rai, and with silent nods, they followed. Suddenly, a trapdoor opened, followed by a ladder being dropped down; revealing the entrance to the room above. Passing by them, the Fairy group noticed that although they followed Rai's commands, their bodies were shaking, frowns on their faces, indicating that they were trying their best to resist.

"It looks like that's our invitation" mentioned Frankenstein.

* * *

 **Topmost floor of the tower**

"Jellal-sama, why would you do that?!" questioned the long haired subordinate.

"Relax, Vidaldas…I told you, this is all a game. And those three in particular are _very_ interesting….especially that black haired man….wonder if they have anything to do with our _friend_ here" smirked the hooded man called Jellal, looking towards the burly warrior who was standing inactive a few feet away. The one called Vidaldas whose name the readers would soon forget anyways went close to Jellal and whispered,

"My Lord, can he be trusted? After all, we've never heard from those guys since they left him with us" he said concerned.

"All that matters is if he can be useful enough to me…..and even if he did turn on us, all I'd have to do is teach him where his place lay…" came the confident reply. "And besides, watching her run around thinking that she could actually beat me is _far_ more interesting"

* * *

 **Basement of the tower**

"So where to now?" asked Lucy.

"I think its better we split up and search for those two…one group to get that cat and the other to look for Erza" suggested Frankenstein.

"Sounds good. I'll team up with Gray-sama" said Juvia instantly, with dreamy eyes and holding one of gray's arms which put off the ice mage.

"FOUND THEM! INTRUDERS!" came the cry, guards appearing and ambushing them. But before any of them could do anything, a certain red haired knight made quick work of them, wielding dual swords.

"Erza!" gasped the ice mage.

"You're ok!" said Lucy with a sigh of relief. Juvia on the other hand was filled with admiration for Titania.

"Why are you guys here?!" questioned the red haired knight with a surprised look.

"Hmph, I didn't think you'd allow yourself to get capture so easily" said Raskreia with a icy look. "And now you ask why we're here trying to rescue your sorry self?"

"Go back…you shouldn't be here" she said softly.

"WHY?! Those guys walk all over us and you expect us to simply walk away?! And besides, they also have happy!" protested Natsu.

"Happy?! Could it be Milianna…?" she asked herself confused.

"I'm going to find him!" he said, making his way. Naturally the others tried to stop him, Erza included. Then, titania remained adamant about asking the others to return, and the others remained adamant in joining her. The arguments continued for a good while, until they all assured her that they'd always support her, regardless of what happened. Frankenstein, Raizel and even Raskreia offered their words of encouragement, which seemed to calm the situation down. She seemed to be shivering, and when Gray touched her shoulder, calling out to her, she turned around to reveal her crying face, albeit only for an instance. Wiping her tears, she slowly breathed out.

"This fight, no matter the outcome, I'll still be gone from the eyes of everyone….so I might as well tell you all about the history of this tower, and the horrors that it holds" she started, and slowly started explaining about the R system, the slave traders, about her captive friends and how they'd support each other in their most desperate times. She also had a bittersweet tone while she told them about Jellal, the man who was behind all this.

"He was the bravest of us all, he was the source of our strength and our resolve to escape no matter what" she said. "We started a revolt that day, and after seeing my comrades get hurt, in my rage, my powers awoke. Using them, I…..let everyone to safety. Only Jellal was left. But it was too late….whatever they did to him, it changed him…..he became evil and twisted, and became obsessed with rebuilding the R system to revive the most vile and evil mage of all times, Zeref. He even killed the guards there, and somehow convinced my other comrades to join him in building it" she finished, teary. "That's why….I'll be the one to fight Jellal"

"Wait a second…..that Zeref you mentioned is…" started Gray

"Yeah, he's the most evil mage to ever live. He's also the one who is responsible for creating those demons, Deliora and Lullaby. Doing something like that is nothing for him" confirmed Erza. Juvia, Gray and Lucy clearly were startled that Jellal would revive such a being.

" _That_ Zeref is the one that Jellal plans to revive?!" gasped Juvia. But what they didn't notice was the confused looks on Frankenstein and Raizel.

" _Zeref…do they mean that brat from 400 years ago?! But I don't get why this Jellal would want to revive him if he isn't dead….it could be possible that they don't know….after all, it was something from so long ago, enough time for facts to become rumors….and again, I don't understand about this name of 'the most vile and evil wizard' that he's acquired….last I checked he was really reclusive and never ventured into human civilization…..hmm I wonder…"_ thought Frankenstein scratching his head.

"It might be that he coaxed Shou and the others saying that I betrayed them by not partaking in his plans….In any case, if I take care of Jellal, it'll all be over" she said.

"It can't be…..there's no way that could be true….are you trying to gain the sympathy of your friends?! Weren't you the one who blew up the ship everyone was on and escaped all by yourself?! Jellal was the one who led everyone to safety after you became mad with your new powers. He promised to bring peace to everyone who suffered at the hands of those monsters!" shouted Shou who came stumbling towards the group.

"Looks like this Jellal is more evil than I thought….I pity you" said Frankenstein.

"Does Erza really look like the type who went mad with a lust for power?" questioned Raskreia.

"Y..You can't fool me! All of that couldn't have been a lie! There's no way Jellal could've lied to us, he saved us! For Jellal…..we built this tower…for our 'paradise'!" he yelled, gaining the sympathy of the others.

"Unfortunately, Erza is right on this one" said a gruff voice, a towering a masked man making his way there.

"It's him!" cried out Gray in caution. But Juvia extended her arm.

"It's ok….back then, he deliberately attacked your ice clone, despite having known about it" she explained.

"I don't sense any dark emotions either" added the blond.

"I needed to fool Shou and the others into believing that we'd gotten you guys. You, Worly, Mirianna have all been lied to by Jellal all along. I, on the other hand, pretended to believe in him till it was the right time….that's right, from the beginning, the one I believed in was always you…Erza" he said taking off his mask, revealing his warm and smiling face.

"Si..simon…" stammered Erza, and shared a hug with him teary eyed. The warmth of their reunion was spread around to the others as well.

"As much I'd hate to break up your reunion like this, we need to be on the move….I'm sure that the ring leader wont be kind enough to wait for us" suggested the blond scientist.

"What's this with all of you being buddy-buddy….what I am supposed to do…who am I supposed to believe in now?!" cried the former nakama of Erza, pounding his fists to the ground. The red haired warrior knelt in front of him, and spoke softly.

"You want to know the truth right? Then, why don't you see for yourself? Then, you can decided whom to believe" she smiled. Shou was somewhat convinced. He wiped away his tears, and gave a simple nod.

"Perfect. With all the powerful mages gathered here, this is the perfect time to hunt down Jellal. Especially you three" said Simon, looking at the noble trio. "I don't know who you are, but I couldn't be more glad for your help. I'd say that just one of you would be strong enough to take down Jellal, but I haven't seen the true powers of either of you. But I have a feeling that makes me want to be a believer. Still, as of now, our priority should be stopping the battle between Natsu-san and Wally. Having those 2 duke it out would be nothing but trouble, and regardless of the outcome, it would only benefit Jellal" suggested Simon.

"We should split up as well. I'm certain that Jellal won't gather all his forces in one place…." Added Erza.

Suddenly, the walls and ceiling were covered with 'mouths' that began speaking.

"Welcome everybody" reverberated a voice.

"Jellal?" questioned Erza.

"Looks like I underestimated Fire Dragon Salamander's abilities, and ended up losing 2 of my pieces. But if you think you've won because you've taken dealt with them, you couldn't be more wrong. **This** is where the game starts! In a short while, the council will fire a magical cannon called 'Etherion' on this tower, which will decimate both this tower and everything else in it. I will be using Erza as a sacrificial piece for my plan. If you're able to stop me, then you win. Else it's game over, one way or another. Oh, and I should also mention that 3 new 'players' will be entering the playing field as well, and I should warn you, they're nothing like the rest you just fought. It'll be 10 on 4, if you can make it to me ie, kukukukuku" and then silence filled the room.

"Damn….the Etherion, this is more serious than I thought….Jellal…you'd go that far?!" cursed the red haired beauty. "Frankenstein, Rai…..just go back, this isn't something that even you…" before she could finish, she saw that Rai was already on his way, and so was Raskreia.

"Didn't you just listen to what I.."

"You worry too much you know…do you really think that these guys and ourselves would simply leave just because he threatened to wipe us all out?" he asked her.

"That's right! Fairy Tail never leaves behind one of our own!" proclaimed Gray.

"You didn't have to strip for that" said Lucy deadpanned.

"Juvia will help Erza-san!" she said, eyes sparkling.

"

"Thanks guys" replied Erza softly. "Anyways, let's split up in groups. We can cover much more ground that way. I'll go with Raskreia and Shou, Gray and Simon can go with Frankenstein, Lucy and Juvia go with Rai"

"I hope you didn't count me as one of the 'powerful mages'" reminded the blonde celestial mage again.

"Let's be off then. Be sure to keep a lookout for Natsu as well" said the blond scientist, and with quick nods, the teams dashed off in different directions.

* * *

 **With Frankenstein and group**

"We've been climbing for quite some time, are you sure this is the way?" asked Gray uncertainly.

"I'm still learning to trace magic accurately, so I can't say for certain. A huge magical power is dwarfing out the rest of the energy signatures in the tower. That could either be Jellal's or Etherion" replied the human scientist.

"Still, I am worried about those 3 new players that he mentioned….." said Simon with a concerned voice.

"AAARRGH!" came out an unmistakable cry

"Looks like you were right" said Gray, the stairways ending in some sort of long hallway. In front of them was the familiar form of the fire dragon slayer with his trusty sidekick exceed, and a demi-human of sorts, half owl half man.

"Hoot~hoot, the warrior of Justice is here!" he proclaimed.

"Th..that's!" exclaimed Simon. The room suddenly grew dark, shadows engulfing the entire hallway, until it was almost pitch black.

"An owl can see well enough in-ARGH!". The darkness covering the walls disappeared, leaving only a small patch on the floor, ceiling and walls where the owl assassin stood before, except that he was impaled by numerous spikes. The member of skull order coughed out blood.

"A…attacking me….before I could even…how dirty.." he stammered, struggling to talk.

"Dirty? I simply played the first turn. And besides, being an owl, if you couldn't dodge that, I'd say I was being very considerate" came the smug reply. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have other business. Goodbye" Extending his hand, a dark beam shot out, completely blasting the assassin. A burnt and singed owl was all that was left. "Sleep tight" he smirked, continuing on like it was just another routine task.

" _Savage!"_ thought Gray and Natsu in unison, deadpanned.

" _He took out that guy in one hit! Who ARE these guys?! Erza….you found some dependable people"_ thought Simon with warmth and admiration in his heart.

* * *

 **Rai and team**

"While Juvia doesn't disrespect Erza-san's wishes, deliberately putting me away from Gray-sama….is she aiming for Gray-sama as well?" asked Juvia, addressing herself in 3rd person. Lucy simple sighed sweatdropping.

"What's that noise?!" exclaimed the celestial mage, covering her ears in reflex. Juvia and Rai however, didn't even flinch.

"Looks like a guitar…Juvia actually thinks its nice though" she replied blandly.

"Why am I the only one always stuck with weirdos!" she retorted, eyes possping comically.

" **Hey yeah!** " came a screaming voice, marked by something black swirling about, until a man's face became visible.

" **It's time for my concert from hell!** " he proclaimed, his entire attire in rock style.

"Is that one of Jellal's three warriors?" questioned Juvia.

"Assassin Guild Skull Order! Hey, we're the skulls, cool name aint it?" he said "Member of trinity raven, Vithaldas Taka is my name!" Strumming his guitar, his hair began flying wildly destroying parts of the walls it came in contact with. Rai was the only one unfazed by this. He simply walked forwards.

" **Hey hey hey, no turning away from a concert!** " came the reply of denial, two locks of hair advancing towards him.

" **Kneel** " The long haired skull order member could do nothing but let his body give in to the pressure, slumping on his knees. His head was also forcibly made to look down.

"Gah! What the hell is this..!" Gritting his teeth, he made all attempts to stand up, but to no avail.

" **Since when did I give you permission to speak?** " thundered the mighty king of all, silencing the peon's voice. Juvia and Lucy could only watch aghast.

" _It's as if he's a king punishing a criminal!"_ thought Juvia wide eyed. But a grin still adorned the face of the maniacal assassin. Juvia suddenly clutched her head and screamed, and was asking something or someone to get out of her head. With a burst of steam, the entire appearance of the water mage changed, his rock style attire mirrored onto hers.

" **Hell, hell, hell! I'm gonna show you the deepest depths of glorious hell!** " she said, in a voice very unlike her own. Lucy gasped, covering her mouth and Rai narrowed his eyes.

" _Now let's see your move, Mystery man!"_ mocked Jellal mentally, knocking a piece that resembled Juvia in the chess board in front of him.

"What in the….what's happened to her?!" wondered Lucy horrified.

" **If you're not ready to rock, get ready to die!** " cried the water mage, sending swirls of water jets at Rai and Lucy. He simply made a barrier that nullified it with no effort.

"Is this…your doing?" he asked simply, his glowing red eyes boring into the Rockstar mage's eyes, finally granting him the ability to speak again.

"Heh…..she's now my 'succubus'! She'll only obey orders from me! Can you bring yourself to hurt one of your own?!" he taunted, whilst Juvia prepared another attack.

" **Time to smash you to bits inside of me!** " Her entire body expanded, flooding the entire hallway in water. Rai covered himself in a blood red transparent shield, whilst the celestial mage was in a more serious predicament. Thinking fast, she counted her options.

" _No….she looks like she's being controlled….what can I do…."_

" _I…don't want to….Lucy-san….I.."_ came the inner true voice of the water mage.

" **Ahahahaah, suffer, suffer!** "

" _If I don't do something, this will be come my watery grave… and I cant have Juvia being used like this …wait a minute, water! That's it!"_ acting quickly, she fumbled around her pouch, until she found the familiar pattern of her Aquarius key. Pressing it on the water, she cried out for her mentally. With a bright flash of light, appeared the curvaceous figure of the blue haired mermaid celestial spirit with an ever present irritable expression.

"Gaah! Would you shut up already!" she cried, flooding the place yet again with an even bigger wave. Needless to say, Raizel was the only one to remain steady, while the others getting washed away comically. Steadying herself, Juvia, still under control, prepared to retaliate. But the noblesse had had enough. Walking over slowly, he made eye contact with the water mage, and her eyes snapped open , as if waking up from sleep.

"Juvia!" cried Lucy, hugging her relieved.

"Ah Lucy-san, I'm so sorry!" apologized the blue haired mage, returning the favor.

"Don't you ever summon me from a place like that again" came a threatening voice of an irritated water bearer, startling Lucy.

"How scary!" gasped Juvia.

"Where are you gonna summon me next? A toilet bowl? Huh?! You and that punk think you-" Her mouth stopped in the half open position it was, after she took a good look at Rai. Any words she had wont come out, and Lucy smirked, teasing her.

"What's wrong my dear Aquarius? Impressed by our Rai are we?" she said, softly jabbing her with her elbow. She continued to look at him for a few more seconds, then sighed.

" _I already have a boyfriend…"_ she thought in a bittersweet manner.

Rai said nothing, but walked over to where Vithaldas was, who was getting up on his feet.

"Curse you….curse you!" he spat. The water around him turned red slowly, increasing in volume, until it started to engulf him.

"You..what the hell is this? Who are you…?!" came the distraught cries of the trinity raven member. But the blood field wouldn't stop.

"You…are not entitled to ask questions" came the stoic reply.

"Kreugh! ARGH!" his cries filled the surroundings, slowly being drowned by the massive tornado of blood that tore into him, until a few moments later, when it dissipated. In the spot where he stood, there was naught but a crater, and no trace of the man once known as Vithaldas. All that was left was the horrified and shocked looks on the faces of Lucy and Aquarius, the latter who was even quivering slightly. The same person she had called a 'punk' had just destroyed a powerful mage that even her attack had done nothing to with almost no effort. A hooded Jellal had the same expression as well, his hands shaking both in excitement and disbelief.

"I take it back….now THIS is scary" remarked Juvia, albeit this time, she was not comically horrified. The trio were both in admiration and shock of the noblesse's might. That was when they truly realized the kind of beings that they were.

* * *

 **IMPORTANT NOTE!**

 **I'd like to say a few things before the next chapter. First off, sorry for not updating for so long, and the shortness of the chapter. I have just recently moved in to Sweden, for my master studies and all. So I was super busy with stuff. And I will probably continue to be busy with my studies as well, since this is a very involving and difficult course. So there's gonna be a small change from the next chapter onwards. Normally I write 4000+ words, but from now on, it would be impossible, I don't have the time. So I'm gonna keep chapters at around 2 words, max to max 3k if I get spare time. Sorry about that :( Anyways, hope you like it, and as for the update frequency, I cant make any assurances as of now, since my schedule is not uniform as of now, but I'll try at weekly or once every 2 week updates. Next time, it will be the battle against Ikaruga and that new guy Jellal has, along with the battle with Jellal himself (hopefully). Thanks for reading!**


	13. Chapter 13: - Teacher

**Even though I tried making weekly updates, my work schedule never allows me to do so. Really no excuse for that. Anyways, I'll just start off now.**

* * *

 **Response to reviews:-**

 **Lazymanjones96: - Thanks a lot for your support, and sorry for the delay!**

 **The SENDER and the TRAVELER :- You'll know soon enough what happens to trinity raven ;) As for the mystery guy, there'll be a small twist, I hope you will remember who it is when he's revealed, but I have a feeling you will :D Anyways, next chapter will conclude this arc :D**

 **Dxhologram: - Yup, but he's gonna have a blast soon enough ;)**

* * *

 **Chapter 13: - Teacher**

"Let's go" hinted Raizel, going ahead to meet up with the others, as if nothing out of the ordinary happened. It took the others a while to catch their attention, and they too followed behind.

"It's good to know we have someone this strong with us" whispered Lucy into the ears of her blue haired friend.

"Yes…Juvia now feels more better about confronting Jellal" she replied. Aquarius, feeling that she won't be needed further ahead, went on to the celestial world.

" _Hmm….I wonder how the others are doing….probably nothing to worry about"_ thought the blonde celestial mage to herself.

* * *

 **With Erza, Raskreia and Sho**

"We've been walking for quite a while now….Sho, are you sure Jellal is this way?" asked Erza.

"Yeah, the way leading to the top of the tower is here, so it must be here" he confirmed.

"Leaving that, is it really ok for you to be so off guard in enemy ground?" asked Rakreia, not paying much attention to their conversation.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm called Ikaruga" said a voice, the sounds of approaching footsteps accompanying her voice. "Yōkoso"

"Am I to presume that you are one of Jellal's warriors?" asked Raskreia in a highly formal tone.

"You have a dignified presence….it has been a while since I met anyone with such a refined persona…pleased to meet you" she said, offering a bow. "Yes, you were correct to presume that I am one of Jellel's warriors. I am called Ikaruga, one of the Trinity Raven. Perhaps it is fate that we had to meet under such circumstances. Let's have a good battle" said the pink haired swordswoman, drawing her curved long bladed katana.

"That's quite the demeaner you have, but your opponent today will be me" said Erza stepping forwards.

"As you wish" she replied. Raskreia stepped back, crossing her legs, intending to only observe. A light engulfed the red haired knight, and she was equipped in her heaven's wheel armor. Summoning half a dozen swords, she rushed at the pink haired beauty, swords clashing in a loud clang. The exchange continued for a few moments. The red head then surrounded Ikaruga with a circle of swirling swords, all of them pointed with a deadly accuracy at her.

"Tenrin: Circle sword!" she cried, sending them all flying at the pink haired beauty. All it took was a flash of a movement, and all of them were shattered.

"Mugetsu-Ryuu, Yaksha Senkuu" she said, gracefully sheathing her sword. "A splendid technique but one with serious flaws. If your opponent is faster than you, or if they manage to take advantage of the duration in which you're wide open after using it, the user is left completely defenseless, just like now". With a crack sound, her heaven's wheel armor completely shattered, leaving her almost exposed and shocked beyond belief. Raskreia raised her eyes.

" _Looks like she can use a sword with good form after all"_ she thought somewhat interested.

"How about a little fire to burn through your sorrow?" she cooed, "Mugetsu-Ryuu, Karura-en!" a massive torrent of fire blasted towards Erza. There was a quick flash, and the red head was in another armor, once that seemed to be resistant to flames.

"Oh? You managed to execute that move quite swiftly" she praised Erza. "But must you willingly expose yourself so prudently in male company? How unsightly" This armor too, shattered and left her with almost nothing. Raskreia however, was getting disappointed and impatient.

"Erza Scarlet, if you cannot handle her, I WILL step in. I don't intend to waste away my time here watching you have trouble with an opponent of her caliber, nor do I have the patience to wait till that huge blast in the sky goes off" she warned, unfolding her arms.

"There wont be any need for that, I've figured this out" smirked the red haired beauty in response. " _I already know that she can cut through dimensions, seeing as how her sword's speed doesn't change at all when cutting through my armor. Plus she's also faster than me. There's only one way to settle this….yeah"_ Relaxing her shoulders, she let herself be engulfed in the familiar white light of her ex-quip. Once it died down, her attire consisted of a loosely fit robe, lilac and white in color, with a long spear in hand. It seemed as if the robe _flowed_ in and out of the contours of her body.

"How distasteful" said Ikaruga with a bitter expression, surprised by her attire. She considered it to be revealing.

"Fufufufu, it matters not what you bring out, I WILL carry out my task!" she cried, disappearing in a flash.

" _Fast! I cant even see! But this is…my win!"_ Raskreia, who was silently watching from afar, expected the familiar clang sound of sword blocking sword, but what came after was the familiar scent of blood being drawn instead. As surprised as Ikaruga, she looked for an explanation and instantly understood what the red head had done.

"This is….!" Remarked Ikaruga, struggling to remove her sword from the robe of yuen. Not wasting any of the precious time she gained, she immediately knocks away the pink haired beauty's sword and ex-quips to her heaven's wheel and summons multiple swords. She hurls them at her, like so many pins to a pin cushion. Ikaruga violently coughs out blood, staggers back, and with shaking hands, tries to remove the swords impaled on her.

"Ha….ha….how swift is your thinking…in that split moment, you came up with a way to cut me, despite having the disadvantage in every aspect to mine…..Erza Scarlet…..a rose that hides its thorns….how…..amusing…."

The body of the sakura swordswoman made a soft thud as it hit the cold stone floor of the tower. The red head's expression remained stiff, neither living occupant of the room able to tell what she was feeling. The noble beauty was the first to break the silence.

"Hmph, I must say, that wasn't what I expected, and I am a bit disappointed that you let yourself get cut just to get an opening, but it was still an interesting move" she said.

"Nee-san! You're bleeding! Will you be fine?!" asked a flustered Shou.

"Yeah….dont worry about it, its only a small cut….the robe of yuen reduced down the damage. But more importantly….Shou, you should head back. Take Simon and the others back to safety"

"Bu..but"

"Please…for me" she requested, and after that, the white haired nakama of Erza didn't feel like turning her down. "Raskreia, could you escort him out of here?" she asked, but Raskreia was already holding him by his hand.

"Come boy, we're leaving" she commanded, tugging at him.

"Please take care of him" she requested again, but the noble lady only frowned.

"You should worry about yourself first, who do you think you're talking to? I can take care of myself" Nevertheless, she gave a silent nod and left without looking back even once.

Now with Shou and the others gone, the only thing in front of her eyes was Jellal. She felt the emptiness around her creep up on her skin, but her resolve was stronger than ever. Tightly gripping her familiar sword, she strode towards the final vestiges of her ordeal.

* * *

 **With Frankenstein and the others**

The blond scientist raised his hands, signaling the three following behind him to stop.

"You guys go on ahead….I have….some thing to take care of here" he said, looking at one corner of the hallway.

"What do you mean?" asked Gray.

"Is there an enemy?" asked Simon.

"Just go on…you need to save Erza don't you?" he urged.

"Nope" came the surprising reply from Natsu. Frankenstein raised his eyes.

"She's not so weak that we need to save her. She will defeat Jellal, I'm sure of it" he said firmly.

"Oh? But I thought you wanted to kick his behind for all the trouble he's caused Erza?" retorted the blond, almost as if reminding him in a comical way.

"Huh, oh yeah! I still have to kick his ass!" came the fiery reply, his eyes now narrowed in comical rage. "Gray, new guy, let's get going!" he said, sprinting ahead. Confused, Gray too followed behind.

"I have a name you know, it's Simon!" remined the almost masked nakama of Erza, following suit. But before disappearing into the next section, he gave one final look at Franky, gesturing that he understood the intention behind his actions.

"Now then, why don't you come out, Mr. Mystery Man who feels so much like a werewolf?" called out the blond, smiling. The hidden figure made no effort to conceal his presence any longer.

"You're not from here are you? Just like us. Was it the werewolves that sent you here?" he questioned. The hooded figure said nothing, and simply lunged forward, extending his arms in a slash to his face. Franky lazily stepped aside, avoiding it by a hair's breath.

"Whoa there, now that was rude! I hadn't even finished talking!" he replied, sending multiple energy spears his way. The hooded man, yet again remaining silent, avoided all of them while continuing to advance towards Franky.

"Hmm…not bad" remarked the blond. "How about this?" The floor became completely pitch black, and multiple spikes protruded from the ground, aiming to perforate him. All that remained was the cloak, which suffered multiple punctures. Frankenstein felt a wind behind him, and with his super human reflexes, avoided a horizontal strike aimed at his neck. The strike kept going, and almost pulverized the pillar nearby.

"There aren't many people even amongst the nobles or werewolves who could've handled my attacks that easily…..who ARE you?" he asked again. But when the dust from the mystery man's attack, he got his answer, and god only knows how many years had it been, since he felt so surprised and confused at the same time. Standing before him was a teenage boy, with golden yellow hair, pale, pupil-less eyes. That presence was unmistakable.

"….Tesamu…..!" breathed the blond, trying to regain his usual composure. The hostile look on his face was what looked off the most. Frankenstein's calculative mind could immediately tell that he wasnt in his right consciousness. Something or someone triggered this, and he had a good idea what that might be.

"Te..teacher..!" growled Tesamu, getting ready to launch another assault.

"Tesamu, so it's really you….so they got you after all…" he said painfully, lowering his head. He could feel the hostility of his own emotions and of his 'lover', both combining and urging him to give in. But he persevered, thinking back to the Lord's request, and also reminding himself that bringing back his former disciple to his senses should take priority.

Tesamu waved his hands together as if conjuring something. The back of Frankenstein's skin tingled, and the next second, half the room was occupied in bright golden flames.

"What the….magic?! How?!" exclaimed the blond, his clothes singed again. His disciple said nothing, only continuing to conjure flame upon flame at his location. He kept jumping around, thinking about the best way to stop this fight without hurting tesamu too much and without releasing his powers.

" _Damn, this is getting annoying_ " he thought to himself.

"Tesamu, get a grip on yourself!" he suggested desperately, but to no avail. Tesamu simply continued attacking his former teacher, his mind stuck on the lingering thought of attacking his teacher.

"Tch, no choice then, I may not be as good as my master, but this should help me buy some time!" he scowled, and focused all his willpower into a single concentrated ray, and attacked the mental barrier of the already sub conscious Tesamu. Considering that he wasn't in his senses, it was much easier for Frankenstein to stop him motionless. The blond werewolf still had the expression of one in disarray. Once in his mind, he encountered several mental barriers encompassing several portions of his mind. But there was one in particular that he could make out immediately, and knew that this was the one that caused his disciple to be the way he was. Why? Because this was his work. Or rather, it used to be. Until someone got a hold of it, and twisted it so much that it was being used for something other than what he meant it to be used for. He knew that this mental barrier in Tesamu's mind was one originally designed by him, based on the Noble's ability to control the mind of others. He had designed it to repress and imprison any destructive personalities or impulses of a person's mind, while helping the person be sane in case there was such a situation. It was something he designed to conclude any conflict by imprisoning hostile thoughts of his enemy and thus making the enemy lose their will to fight. He had initially intended to use it against his crazy lover in case things ever went south. But the barrier on Tesamu's mind was doing the opposite, of repressing a person's mind and only allowing negative and hostile thoughts to take control. This made it easier to control him, and also make him act like a faithful soldier who only thought about destruction. Sometimes, encountering familiar things can help weaken the barrier, and that's how Frankenstein knew that he could stop him. _Only_ Frankenstein could stop him. Removing this barrier didn't even take a second, since he, the original creator, knew how and what he needed to do to disable it. Once done, he also made sure that any other affected portions of Tesamu's mind was also recovered, and then ceased his mental invasion.

Zooming back into reality, he saw the Tesamu's once familiar golden yellow eyes come back to life. He blinked once, twice, and looked around, confused. Thanks to Frankenstein's intervention, he did not lose any memories from whatever happened to him after Frankenstein left him.

"Tesamu, can you hear me?" asked Frankenstein, concerned.

"T…teacher…?! Where…?"

"Ah good. Tesamu, there's a lot of things I'd like to know, and I've made sure that your memories after you left are unaltered. But right now, this place is going to be obliterated in a huge blast, and we really sho-" A voice interrupted him in midway.

" _Frankenstein"_

" _Yes master!"_

" _I have sent the children your way, escort them back to outside. Raskreia is also with them. I shall be going on ahead"_

" _But master, the Etherion will…"_

" _Frankenstein, I order you as your master"_

"… _.Yes master. Please be safe, and try to make it outside before that blast hits….even you wont be able to come out unscathed after being hit by something like that, and the Lord will be very sad if you were to lose your life force again"_

" _You needn't worry Frankenstein, just make sure you get the children and yourself out of harm's way. I shall put an end to things swiftly"_ and with that, the connection was cut.

"Alright, change of plans" he said, alerting his disciple. "We're getting out of here. Can you keep up?" he asked.

"Yes….but teacher….I….attacked…" replied Tesamu, head down.

"Save it. I don't blame you and neither should you. It's not your fault. Right now, I could use your cooperation. So tell me, are you with me?"

"Yes, teacher!" he said immediately. Many footsteps followed, belonging to Gray, Simon, Milliana, Happy, Wally, Lucy, Juvia, Shou and Raskreia.

"Whoa, what happened here?! This place looks like a battlefield!" remarked Gray, looking at the destroyed pillars and singe marks, which left him to ponder if Natsu had a hand in it. Lucy looked around, and notices that Natsu is absent. Juvia edges closer to Gray, and Simon and group look at the newcomer.

"Who's that?" asks Milliana, stroking Happy.

"That's….me disciple. I happened to run into him here, he's here to help" answered Frankenstein. "We can talk about this later, but right now, we should get out of here. Master is already on his way to the top, and asked me to escort you all out of here. There's no guarantee that we can get out alive if that blast fired"

"Not happening! Not without Erza" protested Simon.

"And Natsu too!" added Lucy.

"Don't worry, right now, you going there would only make things worse, and get in way of master. With us out of the way, he can focus on Jellal. Trust in them, there's no way Erza and Natsu would lose to someone like him. We're leaving. Now" he said, and after that, no one said a word. Frankenstein led the way, followed by Tesamu and Raskreia, and then Lucy, Gray, Simon and the others.

"Frankenstein, why is a werewolf here?" asked Raskreia in a low voice, making sure the others didn't hear. Tesamu flinched.

"Like I said, I'll explain once the time is right, but now, let's just get out" with that, Raskreia was mannered enough to stop asking further questions.

"Will Natsu, Erza and Rai really be alright?" asked Lucy.

"Right now, we can only believe in them. I think everything will be fine. Especially with Raizel-san being there" replied Juvia.

"Can they really win against Jellal? We've been with him for 8 years, and his strength is monstrous….there's the Etherion as well…." Wondered Simon.

"I don't know about Jellal, but Raizel was able to beat that weird guy without a scratch. In fact, it was scary to watch….his power was so….tremendous" said Lucy. It seemed to calm down Simon a bit.

"Yeah, even Frankenstein as well….these guys are crazy strong and I'm sure that they can handle themselves….I just hope that they can get out before Etherion fires…" said Gray.

* * *

 **The top of the tower**

"So…this is what it comes to eh, Erza? In the end, looks like I need to do this myself" said the hooded man called Jellal, the light from the charging Etherion illuminating his evil grin.

"Things end here, Jellal!" declared Erza.

* * *

 **Whew, that was good I hope! (I felt the chapter was satisfying to write atleast) hope you enjoyed the small twist I introduced! Anyways, sorry for the long delay, my work kept me quite busy. Next time, the battle at the tower of heaven concludes. Thanks for your reviews and support, favs/follows, and do continue to support me in the future as well. Also, please don't hesitate to point out any mistakes I may have made, I do apologize for them in advance, and I'm very glad if you help me find flaws so that I can correct and improve myself. Thanks again, and see you next time!**


	14. Chapter 14: - Dissolution of a nightmare

**This chapter will conclude the Tower of Heaven arc.**

* * *

 **Response to reviews: -**

 **Greer123: - Thanks! Here's another one, and thanks for reading!**

 **Dxhologram: - It sure will!**

 **SleeplessForest27: - Thanks!**

* * *

 **Chapter 14: - Dissolution of a nightmare**

"Seems like if I need to do this, I'll have to do it myself" called out the hooded mastermind, almost uncaringly and amused at the same time.

"This ends now, Jellal!" retorted the red head, pointing her sword.

*fwip* He was now right in front of her. The startled red head took quick steps backwards.

"And what makes you think that?" he sneered, preparing swirling currents of dark magic and sending it flying towards titania. Despite being exhausted, she didn't even exert the slightest effort to avoid them. Moving in calculating and fluid motions, the red haired beauty closed in on her enemy, and aimed a dozen strikes at him. Not expecting her to be as quick as she was, he was close to being cut a few times in that assault.

"Hoh? You've improved Erza….nothing like the person whom I remember leaving us all behind" he said, in a tone that was partially sarcastic and partly appreciative.

" 'Leave us behind' ? Was that supposed to be a joke? Is that what you've been feeding Simon and the others?" she questioned angrily.

"They were nothing more than pawns for me to finish the R-system." He sneered.

"Simon and the others wasted away their lives here for 8 years! Does that mean nothing to you?!" she screamed. "And besides, you're forgetting something, your whole endeavor by itself seems pointless…..you see, I did my research on the R system"

"Yeah, a sacrifice, which you will soon be Erza!" he grinned madly.

"No, something even more basic than that. Its magic power. To even activate the R system, you need 2.7 billion ideas of magical energy. There isn't a single mage in this continent or any other with that kind of magical energy. I'm pretty sure you knew that better than anyone else…what in the world are you planning?"

"Three minutes left" he said instead, choosing not to answer. Gritting her teeth, she dashed at him with brake neck speeds in a fit of anger, and pinned him against the wall, locking his neck against the pillar with two swords.

"Wake up Jellal! You're plan has failed! The council will soon annihilate this place along with your dreams! Do you just plan to die here?! Fine then, let's meet the end together!" she shouted, continuing to hold him in position.

"Heh, that's not a bad idea" he said, his arms going limp in surrender.

"What?!" asked Erza, confused.

"All of this started when I was possessed by the ghost of zeref back then….I was helpless, and I was set onto a path of the resurrection of Zeref unwillingly. I was just a tool for him. I couldn't even save anyone, not Simon, Shou, Milianna or even you…Paradise, Freedom….they were all just that ,ideals" he said.

"I don't believe you…."

"You're free to believe me or not….it's the end anyways, there's no point for me to lie…."

* * *

 **In the council meeting room**

"Final phase of Ehterion firing in sequence….5…..4…3…..2…..1…..And thus we pray" announced one of the councilmen, and the rest followed behind, including Siegrein.

* * *

 **Outside the tower**

"Woah, that's not looking good, are they really gonna fire that?! Looks like overkill to me !" said Lucy, concerned.

"No kidding…..what's taking Erza so long!" pondered the ice mage nervously.

" _Master…."_ Thought Frankenstein concerned.

* * *

 **Summit of the tower**

"I knew that this wouldn't succeed….but I had no choice but to proceed anyways….Zeref's ghost wouldn't let me….Erza…..please just kill me here…I cant take it any longer" he pleaded.

"Jellal….." she murmured, and with a clang, her swords dropped to the ground. "You don't have to die like this….we can still escape! Forget all that's happened till now, and atone for your sins by living! And….." she said, catching her breath, but her tone more tender. "I'm also sorry…..for being unable to save you….I too, shall atone for that sin of being unable to save my nakama" she said, embracing him. Jellal returned the gesture. And soon, their entire vicinity was enveloped in a brilliant white light.

" _Damn….the Etherion…!"_ thought Natsu, before he was engulfed as well.

* * *

 **On the outside of the tower**

"Incredible…..to think that this world had such a powerful weapon….!" Exclaimed Frankenstein. " _I hope master got out with the others…"_

* * *

 **In the summit of the tower**

Erza tightly shut her eyes, expecting the end to swallow them both away into the afterlife.

"Huh…what happened?" she thought to herself, confused. She looked at the suspicious blue haired perpetrator for answers, and the creepy smile on his face told her everything she needed to know.

"Jellal! What have you done?!" she demanded, reaching for her swords.

"Hehehehehehe…HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Their surroundings now looked very different, no trace of the tower they were in before remained. Rather, it looked crystalline in nature, and was beaming with an immense magical energy.

"I finally acquired it! The 2.7 billion magical ideas of power! Now the R System is complete!" he cried out victoriously. "Hahaha the faces those old fools at the council are making is priceless!"

"You tricked me…!" stammered an unbelieving Erza.

"Oh you really were cute Erza, with all your talk about salvation" criticized a voice from behind.

"Siegrein! What are YOU doing here?! What's going on?!"

"I'll let you in on something Erza….you see, he isn't my 'twin'" smirked Jellal, and the figure of Siegrein slowly started to disappear. "He's 'me'"

"You…..a psychic projection!"

"Precisely! I infiltrated the council, and convinced them to fire the Etherion to fuel the R system. The fools, they fell right into my plan! And now" he said, his 'twin' merging into him again. "With my psychic projection merging with me again, my original powers are back!"

"You bastard….just how much will you continue to deceive and hurt others…." She sneered.

* * *

 **Outside the ruins of the tower**

Their boat was obliterated by the shockwave of the blast, and Raskreia has created a red barrier to keep them afloat.

"Th..there's a huge lachrima crystal where the tower stood…..unbelievable…and that Etherion blast seems to have been absorbed" gasped Gray.

"Tch…looks like the council was played for fools" said Frankenstein irritably.

"What about Natsu and the others inside?" asked Lucy

"I think they'll be alright" replied Tesamu. " Perhaps Jellal's aim all along was to gather enough magical power to activate the R system….and Etherion just provided him with all that energy"

"What now then?" asked Juvia.

"We just wait for master to return" said the blond scientist as a matter of fact way.

* * *

 **Top of the tower**

"What's wrong, Erza? Where did all that energy from before go?" asked Jellal, sneering. He had no trouble pushing around Erza, with all of his magic power restored.

"Curse you…."

"Don't worry too much, Erza…soon, your entire body will be sacrificed to revive Lord Zeref, and our 'Paradise' shall soon become a reality!" he said, laughing maniacally.

"Dream on….the only thing that'll be 'reality' is your defeat! You're blinded if you think I would be foolish enough to allow myself to be capture by the likes of you!"

"How poetic…..but sadly, THIS is reality!" he smirked, and several snake like markings appeared on Erza's body, restraining her.

"I took the chance to put that neat little spell when you hugged me" he explained, moving closer. "And now, all that's left is.."

"For me to kick your arse right?" came a rough voice of a certain angered pink haired teenager, who came bursting in, flames on his hands and all.

"Heh….seems like another eyesore wandered in…..Natsu Dragneel the legendary salamander. I heard you could be irrational at times, but this is foolish even for your standards" he chastised, nodding his head. "Do you REALLY hope to beat me?"

"Enough talk!" he roared, and straight up charged at Jellal like a wild animal.

"Too simple" he said simply, sidestepping to avoid Natsu's attack and retaliating with one of his own. Natsu went crashing into the crystal in the background.

"Natsu!" screamed Erza. She ran over to him desperately. "You fool, why did you get here! You're no match for him, leave him to me! This is not for you to interfere!" she said, shaking him.

"Erza…I wont lose!" he said, attacking her in the gut and knocking her out. This surprised the blue haired ex council member as well.

"Have you finally lost it Salamander? Attacking your own teammate?" he said, almost laughing.

"Erza….is strong, cold, caring, independent and tough. To see her in this state….and for the one to make her like this…..UNFORGIVABLE! When she wakes up, and after I'm done with you, she'll be back to her usual state" he retorted challengingly.

"Bring it on, little punk"

The pink haired dragon slayer dashed forward, wreathed in flames. Spreading his arms out, he spun around flailing them at Jellal. Naturally it missed, but Natsu wasn't done. Using the momentum, he aimed a reverse kick at his neck, charged with his flames. The blue haired man was forced to use his arms to avoid collateral damage. The force of the move pushed him a good couple of feet, his hands still tingling from the impact.

"I see…..it looks like you're not as foolish as I thought..." he smirked, dusting himself off, and his cloak now completely gone. "I've always wanted to get a taste of how dragonslayer magic would feel like, but it's nothing special. Looks like I should also get serious then" The instant he said that, he was cloaked in a blinding light.

"Meteor"

Like a speeding comet, he rushed at Natsu in hypersonic speeds, creating shockwaves just from his acceleration. The force sent Natsu crashing into several sections of the tough lachrima that the tower was built from. Not even getting a chance to recover, another assault bombarded upon him. The pink haired slayer coughed out violently.

" _D…dammit,….s..so fast…I..can't even see him! But I can still track him by his scent!"_

"Oops, looks like I went too far….anymore damage to the tower would spell trouble, then we wouldn't be able to activate the R-system, right Erza?" Unknowingly to him, the beat down dragon slayer was slowly picking himself from the dirt.

"He…heh heh he….so, holding back are we, in case you accidently damage this precious tower? In that case, perhaps I should show you one of my other skills" he smirked and charged up a Fire Dragon's Fist, and plummeted it straight into the ground. The attack left a noticeable crater, sending debris in all directions.

"Property Damage Specialization that is" he claimed proudly.

"You bastard….I spent 8 years to build this tower….I'll not have some loudmouth punk ruin it all!" he roared, and bombarded him with a flurry of kicks and punches, albeit without his meteor enhancement. But this time, Natsu was more than ready to avoid and prevent too much damage. With every hit or block, he retaliated faster and sharper, his senses being sharpened by Jellal's swift attacks and his reflexes growing in response to his affinity as a dragonslayer. And with every small opening he got, he would damage the footing, if only a little bit. But his body was already a wreck, and he was nearing his limit.

" _Heh…compared to Frankenstein's insane speed, this guy's nothin'"_ he smiled to himself confidently, trying to subside the approaching weariness.

Jellal however, wouldn't have it.

"That's it, I've had enough!" he roared again, and crossed his arms above his head, magic flowing in all directions.

"Che….what's that foul magic…" said Natsu, shielding himself.

"Th…that magic! Don't tell me…!" gasped Erza.

"Heavenly magic, Altairis" A humongous sphere of dark and dense energy materialized above them, the sheer size of it enough to tell them what would happen when that hit them.

"Die, Dragonslayer!" Erza immediately shielded Natsu.

"Are you going to kill me as well?" she questioned him, confident that the attack would stop. But the crazed expression on his face told her otherwise.

"At this point, it makes no difference with or without you" he said simply. "Just be smashed to bits!"

"It's alright Natsu…..I'll protect you" she assured the pin head with a smile.

"The one with the last laugh….is me!" he cracked cynically, throwing the gigantic ball at them. The two on the receiving end shielded themselves for the inevitable.

"You're not even worth looking down at" came another commanding voice. The duo behind him and the blue haired mage watched startled, as the Altairis spell was made to come to a standstill. Rai stood before them, one hand outstretched keeping the murderous spell at bay with almost no visible effort. Soon enough, that whole ball shrunk smaller and smaller, until it vanished into nothingness.

"W…what?!" gasped Jellal.

"R…rai…?!" said Erza in a similar tone. " _He stopped that spell so easily…no way!"_ Natsu was equally shocked.

"So…it's you!" he snarled, shaking his fists. "How did you manage to stop my spell?! Not even one of the 10 holy mages can withstand something like that so easily! Who the hell are you?!"

"And who said you were entitled to question me?" he said, the command in his voice floating over them like the sound of waves washing over in the sea. No sooner had he said that, Jellal grabbed his throat, as if being choked.

"Too high" he said simply, and the already speechless Jellal was forced on one knee, his head forced to look down at his feet. "This is the level where your eye meets mine" he thundered, eyes glowing red and arrogant.

" _What the hell is this?! How can he subjugate me, one of the 10 holy saints like this?!"_ thought Jellal, still struggling to even stand.

" _Unbelievable….when Mira and the others told me about Rai's abilities, I couldn't believe it….but now that I'm looking at them myself…..that arrogance, that authority and most importantly…that power….he really is on a very different level than the rest of us…master was right in promoting them to S class"_ thought Erza, wide eyed.

"Th…..this….is..isnt….en…enou…enough….to…..stop….m….me" came the struggling words of Jellal, for whom it was taking all his effort to just say something. Focusing all his magic power, he activated meteor again, and using his speed, he broke the mind control and put himself at a good distance from Rai, panting heavily and trying to gain his composure. This was one opponent he had sorely underestimated. He wasn't going to make that mistake again. Rai raised his eyes.

"Dammit…..to think someone of this level would make himself known…." He gasped heavily. " _There's no way I can win as it is now….Damn….I'll just have to"_

"He..hehehehe….That's it….I'll just blow you all up…the tower can be rebuilt again…just give me another 8…no just 5 more years Zeref…and I'll bring you back into this world…..as for you….I'll just destroy you all along with this tower! En garde!"

"You are not worthy to face…the one who shall, will be him" replied Rai simply, looking at Natsu, who had a look that said 'Leave it to me'.

"Heh…you really think he's strong enough to defeat me?" But Rai refused to answer.

"You bastard….I said it before….for hurting Erza….for making her cry….I'm gonna kick your arse!" he growled, and grabbed a piece of the lachrima froma the ground, and bit into it, devouring the magic power coming off it.

"Is he…?!" started Jellal, and an explosion of magical energy filled the air, emanating from the pink haired dragonslayer. Natsu struggled to handle the power coursing through him, and violently grabbed and flailed around, clutching his throat.

"Natsu!" called out Erza worriedly. But Rai assured her, holding his arm in front of her.

"Hahahahaha! How pathetic, Salamander! To think you'd just destroy yourself, you couldn't have made things more convenient for….huh?" A confused expression appeared on his face, and so it did on Erza's.

The magical energy surrounding took on the form of a dragon, scales covering his body here and there, thoroughly shocking them both, and the faintest hint of a smile was present on Rai's face.

" _He absorbed the energy from Etherion?!"_ The raging slayer rushed straight at him at inhuman speeds, and delivered a knee blow right at Jellal's face.

"YOU MADE ERZA CRY!" he shouted, delivering blow after blow and sending him plummeting through multiple sections of the tower.

"I PROMISED THAT I WOULD PROTECT HER!" he shouted again, attacking him with fire magic repeatedly.

"YOU FOOL! YOU CANT MATCH MY SPEED! METEOR!" retaliated Jellal, encircling Natsu with his speed. But the slayer simply obliterated him with his now enhanced speed, sense of smell and sight.

"GAH!" spat out Jellal, the wind knocked out of him. He flew into the air, and drew a series of complicated runes in the sky in just mere seconds.

"That spell, Abyss Break?! You really mean to destroy everything, Jellal?!" exclaimed the red head.

"I can't be defeated here….I will create a land of Freedom…for everyone…!" he said maniacally.

"All you did is steal the freedom of others, and that kind of freedom obtained from the happiness of others is just a false dream! You really think I'll let you trample over other people's dreams again?! The one who really needs to wake up….is YOU!" roared the pink haired slayer, boosting himself right over Jellal, and with one mighty blow, sent him crashing all the way to the bottom of the tower, whilst destroying it in the process. Rai conjured up a shield to protect the two of them from the debris.

* * *

 **Outside the tower**

The onlookers in the boat observed as the tower exploded and splintered into pieces, telling them that a conclusion had been reached. Lucy, Gray, Juvia, Simon and the others looked on shocked, while Frankenstein and his disciple knew things weren't out of the woods yet.

"Is it…over?" asked Lucy uncertainly.

"No….not yet" said Frankenstein, unmoving.

"But…Natsu and Erza beat Jellal right, so they what's wrong?" asked Happy.

"Could it be that Jellal…?" asked Simon uncertainly.

"No…it's much more serious than that…." Said the blond, narrowing his eyes. Lucy thought what I could be, then it hit her, after looking at the broken and now expanding form of the tower.

"No way…..the tower….with the lachrima gone, all that energy has nowhere to go…."

"Exactly….Etherion has enough energy to wipe out an entire country….not even master can handle that much power without physically straining himself to the limit…." Said Frankenstein, frowning. "There isn't enough time to…"

The skies then turned blood red.

* * *

 **Summit of the tower**

Natsu landed after his attack, quite unsteady on his feet. Erza looked around, witnessing the destruction from his attack. The tower had been obliterated, except for a few sections. But then she noticed. The huge outburst of magical energy, trying to worm its way out into the open.

"This is really bad….without the lachrima to act as a container, all this power has nowhere to go….it's pointless even if we escape….there's no way we can survive the blast….damn…" she said out aloud frantically. "!"

" _Wait…..contain? Can it be…? Perhaps..I can still"_ she then looked at Natsu, who was almost on his knees now. " _Yes…I have no reason to hesitate. You saved me from a certain death…now, I shall repay that favor"_ Slowly, she made her way towards the nearest wall of lachrima, and let the wall absorb her arm into it, and stopped resisting the flow of magic into her. It was painful and traumatic, but her will to protect them kept her going.

"Wh..what are you doing?!" asked Natsu, dumbdfounded. Even Rai was slightly shocked.

"Rai..Natsu…you've saved me from a certain nightmare, one that I feel lasted for a lifetime….consider this a way of returning the favor….If I fuse my body with the Etherion, I should be able to divert the blast away from everyone else. You have to live, Natsu…..go back and stay with everyone happily" she said sadly.

"ERZA NOOO!" screamed Natsu, and put in all his might into reaching out to her and stopping her.

"Goodbye…."

Expecting to feel immeasurable pain and agony, what she felt however was a wave of relief slowly creep over her. Rai had somehow pulled her out without even touching her, his eyes glowing red.

"That was a noble thing to do, Erza Scarlet, however….your help here is unnecessary." He said in a stoic manner. "The one to settle debts shall be me" he said firmly, and with a simply movement of his arm, removed the earring from his left ear.

There was a titanic pillar of red energy, dense and power shooting out into the infinite reaches of the sky. Rai had two huge wings, much longer than the actual size of his body. With gaping mouths and wide eyes, the two fairies witnessed as the pillar not only highlighted their surroundings red with his aura, but also the entirety of the skies. All the way up until the horizon, the sky was died a blood red color, and the being in front of them now showed insurmountable power, something that they could feel in their bones, even if they couldn't sense his energy. The implosion of the tower proceeded to dangerous levels, but the noblesse simply brought his hands forward, and created multiple swirling tornadoes of what looked like blood. The blood tornadoes were forcing the imploding energy to flow in one direction. He then created a creature that looked like a bird made from blood, a phoenix. It was humongous, and emanated power. This time, they could see that Rai was quite strained visibly. His eyes and mouth were bleeding, along with blood leaking from his ears. The phoenix went and hit the final vestiges of the Etherion's energy, and a colossal explosion shook the whole tower and beyond. The collision caused both the opposing energies to merge and form a huge vortex, one that spiraled into the sky and out of harm's way. The vortex itself took several seconds, and unbeknownst to Rai, the initial collision sent both Natsu and Erza flying away from the tower, causing them to land into the sea several feet away from Frankenstein and the others.

* * *

 **Outside the tower**

The loud splash of something crashing into the surface of the water could be heard a few feet away from where they were. Amidst the loud noises of the explosion and the crazy activity going on inside the tower, Frankenstein was the only one who noticed it. He saw a certain pink haired dragon slayer struggling to stay afloat, with his instability after eating Etherion making it worse. He was supporting the red haired beauty and trying to make it across to where they were. Not wasting any time, he started steering towards the two, got the two of them, and supported them into the boat.

"Whoa, it's these guys! They're quite messed up…what in the world happened in there?!" asked Gray.

"Does this mean they defeated Jellal?" asked Shou.

"But of course! These two will never lose!" claimed Happy happily.

"Two? Where's Rai?!" asked Lucy.

"Oh shit, that's right! He was with them when he went!" added Gray.

"He…..he…hehe….He's so strong…." Breathed out Natsu, still in amazement after seeing Rai displaying his power up close for the first time.

"Where is master?!" asked the blond. But the pink haired slayer found no reason to answer, since a figure landed right next to them. Raizel stood before them, as if nothing that happened in the tower actually ever happened. Even the blood that Natsu remembered seeing was all gone, and he stood as if he was never even here in the first place, even his clothes didn't have a speck of dust on them. Too fatigued to even think about it, Natsu let the comfortable darkness of his consciousness fading take over.

"Master….!" Gasped the blond, shocked that the cross from his ear was gone and that he looked visibly strained, even if he didn't have any physical damage visible.

"Raizel…..was that your doing?" asked Raskreia. "That must have….." But Rai silenced her with a gesture. "It's not for you to worry, Raskreia. I am alright. We should make it our priority to get back" and took out the cross from his pocket and clicked it back into his ear. It was only now that that raging skies calmed down, and the blood red color of the sky changed back to its comfortable blue one. Apart from them, the mages were still having trouble understanding what had happened. A few moments before, the entire sky turned blood red, leaving them speechless about what entity could have so much power. Etherion had the power to wipe out the power of an entire continent, and yet, even that was rendered ineffective by an even mightier power. Questions, questions. A lot of them were eating up their minds, even Frankensteins's. But for now, they decided to let them slide, and as if taking a clue from the calmness the ocean now exhibited, they decided to save things until they returned.

Tower of Heaven arc complete

* * *

 **Hey guys, thanks for reading, and I hope things were satisfactory in this arc! I tried a new way of writing, and if you noticed, tried to keep the OP characteristic of the noblesse characters minimal and not have it like 'The OP character always saves the day'. I tried to make sure that each character remained important enough without emphasizing on a particular one. Now I know you may have a lot of questions about the power scaling, especially about how Rai could've stopped Etherion either 1) easily or 2) he couldn't have stopped it at all. An explanation for this will be in the next chapter. Anyways, like I said, the tower of heaven arc is done with this chapter, and there will be a small 'aftermath' part of this arc in the next chapter, but it will only be a small part.**


	15. Chapter 15 : - The enigmatic student

**This chapter will start the Laxus arc and has a small initial epilogue for the Tower of Heaven arc. Sorry for being so late, was super busy with Assignments and tests :( :(**

* * *

 **Response to reviews: -**

 **Dimasfuja: - Thanks a lot!**

 **Greer123 : - Thank you for your support!**

 **Dxhologram : - Well, I've explained it as much as I can for now, hope that answers your question! And thanks for reading!**

 **N2 : - Well, here it is! Sorry once again for being so late!**

 **Anonymous: - Thanks!**

* * *

 **Chapter 15: - The enigmatic student**

At a safe distance from the aged remains of the council building, a solitary figure of a young woman was peering through her crystal ball, looking at the events that transpired in the Tower of Heaven. She had an interested expression on her face, and she was literally 'checking out' the people involved in the incident, making a mental report of sorts. But the ones she was really interested in were the 'new guys', whom she had no idea about, and were missing when she was there at Galuna island.

"Hmm let's see here" she murmured to herself, pushing her raven black hair out of her eyes, and behind her earlobes. The crystal ball flickered and the image of a handsome and elegant blond man, with wavy, shoulder length hair came into view. Her face naturally blushed, as if by reflex.

"Oh my…" she said to herself dreamily, unable to believe that someone so perfect could exist. Nodding her head, as if to bring herself back to reality from her fantasies, she began watching intently his battle with the owl warrior, and then the robed fighter with the golden flames.

"He's really crafty, clever and plays dirty as well" she snickered "Just my type" And then swiped over her crystal. The second figure was that of a young woman, with long raven black hair, red eyes and steeled looks. Ultear's eyes frowned a bit.

"Hmph…just because she looks a bit more pretty she thinks she can act so arrogant" she said to herself yet again. The feeling of jealousy was undeniable, but she wouldn't admit it. Her skill was remarkable too, which made that feeling accelerate further. Thankfully, this girl hadn't participated in the activities all that much, so Ultear was grateful that she needn't look at this one for too long. The third figure was that of the hooded stranger that was introduced to Jellal by the 'nobles'. He used mysterious golden flames, and seemed to be powerful enough, beyond the expectations that Jellal had of him. He was even going head on with the handsome blond man, and yet, she could tell that the latter was holding back, since he wasn't fighting in his usual 'sly' style. Nothing too interesting, but still, she decided to keep him in the back of her mind. Maybe her master would find him more interesting than she did. Then, she swiped over one last time. The screen flickered yet again, revealing her final 'subject for study'. She immediately covered her mouth, a furious blush adorning her face.

"Kyaa~~~Oh my oh my oh my!" she exclaimed, her legs flailing wildly in the air as she continued to admire his entire presence lying face down at the grassy floor of the forest she was in. The regal and noble looking man who stood before her had the most perfect face, most perfect demeanor and his fighting too was graceful and beautiful to watch. To top it off, his pride and arrogance only complemented the above said things. It took her multiple rewinds of that scene and a few more moments to get serious once again.

"Incredible….he has enough power to singlehandedly stop the power of Etherion…but it does seem like even he has his limits" she remarked, judging from the bleeding on his eyes, ears and mouth. "Master would be extremely pleased" she said once again to herself. The crystal once again flickered, and the face of her familiar master blinked into existence.

"Master" she called out, in her more formal tone.

"Ultear. I see that you made short work of those fools in the council and of Jellal as well"

"Yes. That idiot didn't even realize that I played the voice of 'Zeref' so many years back, and became pray to being manipulated" she recounted, proud of her handiwork. "It's such a pity that he couldn't have achieved his goals even if it had succeeded….after all, Zeref was never 'dead' was he? He's just out there sleeping"

"That's right…and thanks to the stunt he pulled, we have the magical energy needed to create this key…you have done well, Ultear" said Hades.

"You honor me, master hades" she replied with a small bow. "There is something else I wish to report as well" Her master gave a surprised look. "Its about some mages that might be a problem to us in the future…actually, they might not even be mages in the first place…I think they are…"

 **Fairy tail guild halls**

None of the members that arrived in the halls of the guild had spoken a word during their entire return journey. Makarov and the others rushed to greet them, and prioritized on getting them treated immediately.

"I'm sorry, but could you get a place for master?" asked Frankenstein, urgently. The old master looked confused at first, but then nodded silently and took the tired Raizel into one of the guild's inner resting chambers. Frankenstein followed closely behind.

"What on earthland could've happened to stress Raizel of all people to this level?" asked Makarov silently, looking back at the rest of the guild members.

"Let me get master to rest first" he replied, and Makarov gave another nod, returning to the others.

"Master…..how much life force did you…"

"Frankenstein, everyone is safe. That is all that matters" he replied.

"But…"

"I would like to rest" he said again, cutting off the blond.

"Should we move away elsewhere temporarily? Perhaps we can seclude ourselves till master can recover his strength" suggested Frankenstein. His master said nothing.

" _Judging from his aura, and how much tired master looks, I'd say half his life force is gone. Agreed that master recovered all of his life force after coming here, and his condition could be worse, but even so, half of his total life force is still a titanic amount. We can't risk getting involved in another battle for quite some time. Still, now that Tesamu's here, wielding magic and giving off the aura of a werewolf, this is no longer something that's not our concern…..Originally, I really wanted to be off this world after our debt had been repaid, so as to not influence and disrupt the inhabitants of this world more…but now there's no choice…we might have to stay here longer than we thought, and I WILL get to the bottom of what's happening here…..it's been centuries since I last stayed here for quite some time…..I wonder how 'she' is doing right now….."_

* * *

 **In the guild halls**

"So what in the world happened there?" asked Makarov. "And who might this be?" he asked again, looking at Tesamu, who was again cloaked. Cana, Wakaba, Romeo, Macao and the others looked curiously, as to who the newcomer could be.

"Ah, sorry about that!" the hooded stranger said, lifting off his hood. Several in the vicinity gasped. "I'm Tesamu, master Frankenstein's disciple" and flashed a smile. The swooning of the ladies was expected to say the least.

"~~Hey~~I'm Cana Alberona, nice to meetcha~~" she purred in a seductive voice, sliding up his arm, making sure that her cleavage was exposed just enough.

" _Hehe, I wont let this one get away~~"_ she thought in a naughty demeanor. Tesamu nervously chuckled, not knowing how to react. He simply scratched his head, replying with a 'My pleasure', stammering all the way. She refused to let go, until Wakaba and Macao had no choice but to interfere and drag the protesting brunette away.

"Deathly silent he remained in the ship, hood covered and all" said Erza, whispering into the ear of the master. The guild master gave a nod of understanding.

"Well, since none of us actually spoke to each other in our journey back home, I suppose introductions are underway" said the red haired beauty, reaching out with a handshake.

"I'm Erza Scarlet" she said, beaming out a smile. The disciple returned the favor.

"Lucy!" chimed in the celestial mage.

"Happy!" said the blue cat.

"I'm Natsu, nice to meetcha!" he said, grinning widely.

"Gray" said the ice mage, albeit without half of his clothes, grinning nonetheless.

"Nice to meet you" said Tesamu "Forgive me if this sounds rude, Gray-san, but is it custom here to wear something like that?" he asked genuinely confused. Flabbergasted, Gray noticed that indeed half his clothes disappeared into thin air. Erza found the need to discipline the ice mage with a light bonk on the head, and a comical annoyed expression on her face. As all the nearby mages finished introducing themselves, there was one that hadn't quite participated in the commotion surrounding him. Letting his eyes run down her flowing white hair, curvy figure and tight fit magenta dress, all else seemed to escape his field of vision. The white haired curvaceous beauty simply looked at him, gave a bright smile that warmed his heart, and extended her hand.

"Hey! I'm Mira" she said with a small giggle. His heart skipped a beat, and if he could see the mirror, he would've been surprised at how red he had gone.

"I..I'm.T..Tesamu" he managed to respond back, slightly looking away. Cana looked at the scene, and at Mira, and sighed. " _I can already see where this is going"_ she thought slightly disappointed. The two continued to gaze at each other for a moment, enough atleast to catch the attention of the others. The door at the far end flung open suddenly, catching their attention. The disciple and the white haired beauty broke their gaze, but a bit red.

"I had a long talk with master, and this is what we agreed on. Master is too tired from his last battle. So I proposed that he take a few days off, away from town so he could rest a while. I…have somethings I want to take care of in town, so I'll be away as well. Raskreia will keep master company. Tesamu can stay here" he said.

"I see…that's a pity. If Raizel was well enough, he could have attended the fantasia parade" sighed Makarov, "But his health comes first"

"But teacher, you want me to stay here?" asked the blond student confused, but also partially happy.

"Oh yeah, we never got to hear about him and how Frankenstein had a disciple" said Natsu, while chewing on a piece of flaming meat.

"Also, how did Raizel get so injured?" asked Mira with concern.

"That and what's his story for being at Jellal's side" added Erza. Before Tesamu could say anything, Franky cut in.

"He is….a disciple of mine from a long time back. It seems that he was 'manipulated' into being with Jellal, although Jellal had no connection with Tesamu directly. They also must have experimented on him to give him increased abilities. That's why I'm going to investigate further." Explained the scientist. "As for what happened to master, he used his powers to stop Etherion from destroying everything after the council fired it off. Naturally as you know that since using his powers would deplete his life force, this time around, I estimate that at least 50% of his life force is gone. Although this is a big problem, it can be recovered, given master takes sufficient rest here. The lachrima-stone on his earring should help him recover in a few days. So I proposed that Master stay secluded away from danger till then, while I investigate the events that happened at the Tower, including what happened to my student here"

Mira looked even more sad, hearing what happened to Raizel. Lucy, Erza, Gray and even Natsu also looked a bit down, considering that they were present when the incident happened, and knew the depth of what Raizel had done for them. Although Raskreia's expression was unchanged, she still felt an uncomfortable twinge in her mind.

"Then let me come with you!" insisted the student.

"No. I must do this alone. If you came along, it would be difficult to remain hidden in the eyes of the perpetrator. And besides, I think it would be better for you to stay here, in case any of 'them' decide to cause problems again" said Franky. Having been under the tutelage of one of the most brilliant minds of the planet, Tesamu had a rough idea as to why his teacher didn't want too many details of their incident to come out before the members of Fairy Tail. He simply nodded.

"I really don't want to burden you guys anymore than I have, but I really have to tend to a certain matter urgently. And with master being totally exhausted, I feel uncomfortable leaving him alone, in case another incident happens."

"Don't worry, don't worry! Why are you being all formal, Frankenstein!? You are a member of this guild after all! Feel free to leave him here, we'll take _good_ care of him! All he needs to do is be a member of Fairy Tail!" he beamed. "As for Raizel, if all that he needs is a few days of peace and quiet to recover from his battle, I'll do everything in my power to make it happen. That's the least I can do for the price he paid to keep my brats alive from Etherion's blast" he assured again. "Tesamu can watch over anything that happens here, and as a member of FT, he would have lesser trouble attracting attention as an outsider would"

"But I…" protested Tesamu.

"It's alright! Even your teacher is a member here!" he informed, thoroughly shocking him.

" _Even teacher is a member of this guild!? Then I suppose I will have to join as well!"_

"Oh alright then, I suppose I could join your guild" he said casually. Mira was already there with a yellow stamp of the guild mark.

"Yellow huh, convenient!" he remarked, which seemed to make the white haired beauty happy. Master and the others were still surprised that Mira was that quick in wanting to make him a member, and even made sure that the color of the stamp was the one that Tesamu wanted.

" _Neat! I was sad when I found out that I couldn't ask Raizel, Frankenstein and Raskreia to join in the Fairy Tail Fashion Parade for the festival, since their participation alone would make our popularity top the charts..but oh well, this boy isn't that bad looking either! Combine that with our Fairy beauties contest, this year, it'll be our win!"_ grinned Makarov to himself, shaking in excitement. Something that wasn't unnoticed by the blond scientist.

"You seem really happy for some reason" he pointed out.

"Ah…that! Haha, I'm just overjoyed that we have a new nakama! Things will really liven up now!" he said, slightly flustered.

"I think master might be excited about the fantasia parade" said Mira innocently. "And Tesamu here looks like he'd win the contest all by himself" she giggled.

"Parade?" asked the lad in question curiously.

"Hoh? Parade? Why don't you fill me in? Sounds _very interesting_ " smiled Frankenstein, with a flare of sarcasm in his face.

"Ah ha ha…you see, every year this town has a parade to commemorate this town's founding. I was thinking that it would be great if Tesamu here took part in it, since every year we hold events and the winner gets amazing prizes from the mayor" he said in a convincing way.

"Hmm…I see"

"If you don't mind me asking, when will you be leaving?" asked Makarov in a more serious manner.

"In about 2 days. I still need to prepare everything for master to make his recovery as best as possible" came the answer.

"I see…in that case, why don't you consider joining the 1st day of the Fantasia Fair? I'm sure it'll be a good chance for Raizel to experience the culture of this town and for him to rest and relax! The same goes for you and Raskreia too!" he suggested. Frankenstein thought to himself, considering the proposition.

" _Hmm…I suppose I could…..just for a bit. Like he says, it's a good change for master away from his stern life as a noblesse. Lord did want him to experience all different kinds of things in the human world. I suppose staying for a bit wont hurt all that much and it might make it easier to convince master to stay away from Fairy Tail for a few days so that he can recover….knowing him, if I ask him to ignore their invitation and go recuperate, master would refuse….it would be better then to…."_

"Alright then. It's settled. Master and I shall accompany you, even if only for a short while" The joy and satisfaction on Makarov's face was self-evident.

"Tesamu, come over for a second" called out Frankenstein, and proceeded to return to Raizel's room. Raskreia too went in, without needing to be called.

"Master…will it be really ok, involving Raizel in the festival? Shouldn't we let him rest?" asked Levy.

"I agree….I haven't seen him that exhausted before" added Erza.

"It'll be fine….rather than for him to be locked up in a room till he leaves, it would be good for him to be exposed to the positive environment of the festival…they say a resting mind also needs a good environment to facilitate recovery" said Makarov.

"But why haven't you called Porlyusica?" asked Elfman. "Surely she can help him out"

"No….I think it's better to let Frankenstein handle this. From what I heard about him from Porlyusica, he managed to learn all of her healing methods and magic in the short time he spent there initially. She said all of the things she knew throughout her long years of practicing healing magic _paled_ in comparison to what Frankenstein already knew, even though he couldn't use magic himself. It wasn't long before he was the one who was teaching _her_ about things from where he came" said Makarov again, more serious in tone. The feeling of disbelief was mutual amongst the people present there.

"Incredible…"

* * *

 **Inside Raizel's room**

"So, mind filling me in?" demanded Raskreia sternly. Frankenstein kept a sharp year as well. Rai straightened himself up.

"Well, where do I begin? After discovering that the elders of the 'Union' as they call themselves decided to kill my master, I immediately rushed to him to warn him of the attack. But it was unnecessary, seeing as how master was already in the process of evacuating the place. Using the note you left me, I could find out the location of the research data you left behind. I planned to disappear in the eyes of the union, having made it as if I died trying to stop you. Then I planned to live out the rest of my life helping out people with the knowledge I gained. It worked for a while, but after few years I was discovered by one of the elders. By then, I had grown a bit stronger, but it was nowhere near enough to stop an Elder of the union. In the end, they acquired all the data you left behind from me, and as punishment for deceiving them, they decided to experiment on new technology 'for the sake of the betterment of their kind'. I don't remember how long I was experimented on, but I found that after all that was done, I had werewolf powers. My body, which was 20 years old biologically at that time, had stopped aging like a normal human, and I also got regenerative powers like those of werewolves. At one point, one of the noble Elders present took my locket and disappeared. Afterwards I heard about how another elder got bested by teacher in a fight, and how the plan for using the locket failed. A long time passed, and then, new experiments were being carried out. This happened when a tremendous force created a portal to this world, and the elders wasted no time in getting here. It was as if they were expecting this and knew of this world. Here, many of them set up base and began gathering test materials and foreign items. It turns out that the whole point of monopolizing test subjects to perform werewolf experiments on them was to see if they can serve as vessels for magical stones called 'lachrima'. These stones were being directly implemented into the bodies of the successful test subjects and to see if the subjects could exhibit magic abilities. It was…..really bad to say the least. Unable to withstand the incompatibility of foreign objects in their bodies, many of their bodies would rip apart painfully and slowly, and the death rates were quite high. Yet, more and more subjects came rolling in regardless. I was one of them, since I had shown good compatibility with my werewolf powers. I remember as my body was torn apart from the inside out, each cell in my body being rewritten, each muscle being recalibrated. It took hours to finally settle down, but I survived regardless. Fearing for rebellion, they also implemented a mind control on my mind, courtesy of the noble leaders in the union. They said that the union of Werewolf/Noble and a mage would give birth to an ultimate being with ultimate power. I theorized that they were planning to wage war against an entity. I'm certain they want to conquer Lukedonia and the world of the humans back in our world. I was assigned to be with Jellal fernandes, as a deal made with him and the elders. After that, well you know how it goes. Even I don't know the location of the base of the union here. Every time we were transported for experiments or anything else, it was always so secretive. They're definitely planning something much bigger than anything done before." He finished. There was a stunned silence across the room. Frankenstein was surprised by the magnitude of the events that took place. He never expected that betrayal amongst the werewolves and the nobles would go to this level. He was aware of it being present, but this was an unprecedented level. Raskreia was also equally stunned, being thrown off by the fact that there were traitors in the union working with humans, plotting to overthrow her home. Frankenstein's words of warning echoed in her head from their time when Raizel had just entered this world. Raizel on the other hand, felt sad and surprised at the same time. His servant had always spoken about Nobles straying off from the path, and the Lord had hinted it as well. He felt pity that people he trusted, were going down a path in which he knew he would had to take action eventually.

"Unbelievable…..this world is more intertwined with ours than I originally thought….I was right in thinking that I might have to snoop around to find out more" said Frankenstein.

"Then what would you do? Leave here and consult the noble leaders directly?" asked Raskreia.

"No, that would be too hasty. We still don't know for sure if the leaders themselves are to blame, or other nobles in the family. I always had my doubt in Ignis, daughter of Roctis Kravai. I'm certain she's part of their main group. It would be better to investigate this from here, where I can catch them in their act. If we went marching to Lukedonia to inform them about what we've found out, there might be a chance that any traitor who's present there might also hear about it and act on that. The best way to inform them would be to contact the Lord privately, and tell him and him alone. He can then decide on the best course of action. For his, I would trust no one but you" he said , turning to Raskreia. "Being the Lord's daughter, you would be the best suited to inform him. It also would not attract any suspicion when you try to contact him. I leave this part up to you" he said. Raskreia gave a small nod.

"But how are you certain that the Elders are not using this boy as a medium to eavesdrop on us? How are you sure he's still free of their mind control? A noble's powers are yet to be so easily broken" questioned the Noble heiress.

"Ah that. You needn't worry about that. After all, I've understood how exactly a noble's mind control works. As long as it's not by someone of master's or the Lord's level, it's not that hard to free someone of mind control, especially is the person affected is strong willed. I made sure to remove all possible constraints on his mind."

"I see"

"As for us, these new revelations changes things. I have no choice now but to leave master here in Tesamu's care. I don't have the aura of a werewolf or a noble. I can pass myself off as a regular human and it would be easier for me to infiltrate their base. Plus, I'm strong enough to resist the enemy's abilities. Tesamu and master can stay here in FT, laying low and not grabbing unneeded attention. In the meantime, the news of these recent events must be passed on to Lukedonia. If what Tesamu says is right, then the nobles in Lukedonia could be in potential danger. Raskreia, it would be better for you to travel back to Lukedonia and inform the Lord yourself. I'm certain he is also dying to hear some news about master. So this would be getting 2 fruits with one stone" he explained.

"Understood master" said Tesamu. "Raizel-nim is master's master, so that makes him my master as well. I shall not let any harm befall him" he assured.

" _I'm impressed by his speed to improvise and adapt to any new changes"_ thought Raskreia to herself. "Alright, that seems logical"

"We'll leave in 2 days. I also need some time for preparations. Makarov wanted us to actually attend the 1st day of the local fair festival. I think it's a good chance for us to soak ourselves in a calm atmosphere after the events at the Tower, and we'll also have a clean mind when the situation calls for it. After that, we should implement our plan. Does that sound good master?" he asked, looking at his face. He merely responded with a nod.

" _Good. As I thought, this was the best way to convince master to stay away from FT for a few days and recover for a while"_

" _Was that why you planned out all this, Frankenstein?"_ asked his master mentally.

" _Ah, I wasn't aware I spoke out aloud in my mind! Please forgive me"_ came the reply, yet again mentally, and his face showing signs of embarrassment.

" _But yes master. I really wish you would seclude yourself and let your body heal till you recover your lost life force. But I also knew master would not feel comfortable leaving the humans here. So I spoke with Makarov and thought this would be the best possible course of action. Once again, I am sorry for putting it this way, but please know that we worry about your wellbeing a lot. Even Makarov and the others agree-"_

" _It's fine, Frankenstein, you needn't worry too much. I am happy for what you have done for me so far"_ he assured mentally.

" _You honor me, master"_

"With that, I would also like to mention that we keep this to ourselves. We shouldn't unnecessarily worry the others. Best to keep things as they are, including the fact about our origins" he finished.

* * *

 **Super sorry for being so late with the update! I had a really hectic week with extra assignments and tests! So I made sure to make this chapter longer than usual! I sincerely thank you for your support and having the patience to wait! As you can see, I'm slowly introducing the 'big plot' for my original arc that happens right after this one. So I plan to keep the whole 'Laxus arc' shorter than the usual ones and as a foundation to introduce the white mist town arc. Hopefully, I can bring out another chapter soon! As always, thanks for reading! Feel free to leave comments/critics, and I'll answer them as much as I can, without spoiling it too much.**


	16. Chapter 16: - Some skinship and eyecandy

**Hey guys, thanks for waiting! Here's another update! As you could guess from the previous chapter, Tesamu will be the main 'Noblesse' character for the Laxus arc. Not much of Rai, Raskreia or Franky(Sorry** **), well, atleast in the battle of Fairy Tail. Because I really want to 'save them' for the next arc and introduce and integrate Tesamu into the story properly, give him a bit of character development. I guess I'm overemphasizing my next arc, but I have some ideas for this one, and I'm VERY enthusiastic about it!**

* * *

 **Response to reviews: -**

 **N2: - Thanks, and here's another quick update!**

 **Anonymous: - Thank you so much! I too hope to get more reviews in the future, so thank you for yours!**

* * *

 **Chapter 16: - Parades, contests, eye candies and some skinship!**

It was not long before Raskreia left without saying a word. Frankenstein would've preferred if she had atleast told them, but on second thoughts, felt this was better, otherwise she would've had to lie to convince Makarov and the others not to dig further. But then again, he felt she could've atleast said she was going home or something, since that would still technically be the truth. Staring off into the early golden rays of the rising sun, Franky let the gentle breeze ruffle his hair.

"~~Hey old man!~~" came someone's calling voice, which annoyed the blond a bit. Although he WAS technically WAY older than these humans, it still didn't feel right to be called old.

"You really know how to piss someone off early morning don't you?" retorted the blond, a vein popping in his head. "And I'm surprised to see YOU of all people awake this early"

"Well, I'm just fired up for the festival, shishihsihi!" said the pink head, rubbing his nose. "I don't see Raskreia or Rai though….even Tesamu" he questioned.

"Raskreia….well, I'm not sure where she is, she wasn't here when I looked. I think she'll be back, since we decided to depart together after all. As for master and Tesamu, they're both away to look for a suitable place for master to recuperate." Came the reply.

"Really?! You know, you could just stay in one of the dorms or just rent a place in the town…that's what me and Happy do anyways, and the others too" suggested Natsu.

"True, but I think it would be better for master to stay in a place where it's peaceful and away from unwanted attention" said Frankenstein, still looking towards the rising sun. Natsu was content with that reply. "So what's this festival about anyways?"

"Beats me…its something the town's folk have this year round, but what I do know that it's a lot of fun! There's musicals, all-you-can-eat buffets, beauty contests, dance shows….all the guild members usually end up participating in one thing or the other…..and today at the end there's the fairy beauty contest. The old man kinda forces us to participate, but I do have to say, it's fun, especially when it gets to the female's contest" said Natsu, grinning naughtily. "Well, I'm gonna go inside and train myself for a bit….it kinda feels empty nowadays if I don't train everyday"

"Oh? How about sparring with me then?"

"You're on, old man!"

 **A few hours into the morning**

Natsu and Franky returned to the guild after their few hours of sparring. Needless to say, the former was covered in bruises, torn clothes and immeasurable dirt. The latter on the other hand, was pretty much the same as when he left, still bearing a refined and peaceful expression on his face.

"Oh that reminds me, it entirely skipped my mind yesterday….what's with the guild? Looks like you guys stepped it up a notch" he said.

"Oh yeah…." Replied Natsu, breathing heavily. "Gramps had it renovated while we were away fighting in the tower…..probably for the festival…"

"Something tells me you don't like it"

"Meh….it's so different now. Anyone can go to the second floor, the have a swimming pool, everything's new and shiny, there's all sorts of shops and everything inside….I liked it when everything was old and dusty" said the pink haired teen grumpily. The duo entered the guild, to be greeted by some nearby members, and introducing them to all the new changes. In a collectibles shop, Frankenstein sensed a dark aura, the owner of which was a certain raven haired female noble.

" **how dare you to make such an indecent toy?!** " she thundered, comical veins popping in her head, putting max the shopkeeper in disarray. He started to back away, sweatdropping.

"~Co..come now, Raskreia…all I did was…" he stammered.

" **Silence!** "

"Eeek!"

"What's with the commotion?" asked Frankenstein, looking to act as a mediatory.

" I did was make a figurine of Raskreia here…ehehe" said max, showing the mini raskreia figurine making a pose, as if holding her sword.

"That's it? Why is she so mad about this then?" he wondered to himself.

"Perhaps because of this" said Natsu, and removed the clothing off the figurine leaving nothing but a bra and underwear. Frankenstein looked deadpanned, and almost jumped back in surprise. He was so taken aback, he didn't know what to say or how to act.

"T..think of it this way, wont you? Fairy Tail is making good fortune off of these, since they're _really_ popular with the guys" he said.

"It seems as if you don't value your life too much" replied Franky, deadpanned, being the only one standing between max and Raskreia.

"What's with the commotion there?" asked Gray, who joined in. Not far from where they stood, there was a large crowd of girls, as if examining something.

"Oh that? It's because of this" said the ever sweet voice of Mira, handing them something. In her hands were two other figurines, one of a certain blond scientist making a cool pose, and the other of his master, making yet another elegant pose. All time froze around Franky, his eyes deadpanned. Before everything else could evade him, Mira also said "Naturally the clothing is removable in this one as well. It's so popular with the ladies! So I have one too!" she chirped. He watched aghast, as little Franky's clothes were removed, revealing a chiseled body and swim trunks with little purple streaks in them. Rai's figurine was wearing black boxers with red streaks instead, similar to the one they wore in the beach.

"How dare you…make a toy out of master.." he said slowly and deeply, a creepy smile adorning his face and veins popping in his head. Almost crushing the little figurines, a creepy aura slowly surrounded him. Mira sweatdropped, and tried to wiggle the figurines out of his hands, but to no avail.

"I'll put an end to this!" he declared, going over to the group of girls.

"Oh Frankenstein, Raskreia, you guys are back?" asked Cana, breaking his advance. "Did you check out the new facilities yet?" she asked.

"Out of the way" he said, still bent on retrieving the figurines with the others.

"Oh Frankenstein, Raskreia, welcome back! Just in time as well I'd say!" said Makarov, walking towards them with another person. "I'd like to introduce our new member" he said cheerfully, pointing to Juvia.

"Hoh? Isn't this one of the phantom 4?" he asked, hand on his chin. All his bloodlust from wanting to destroy the Rai and Frankenstein figurines dissipated as the thought escaped his mind temporarily. Erza, Mira, Cana, Lucy, Levy, Gray, Macao, Wakaba, and many others sighed in relief, happy that their Figurines of the male hotties(for the girls, and some guys) and Raskreia's(mostly owned by all the guys and some girls as well) were safe from Frankenstein's and Raskreia's wraths.

"Th..that's right. I'm Juvia Locksar, pleased to meet you" she said shyly.

"So you joined the guild I see" said Gray, smiling which sent Juvia in a 'love-fit'.

"Welcome to the guild" said Erza, who was wearing a new design of the Heart Kreuz armor.

"Let's get along well!" said Lucy, giving a handshake.

"Oh, and there's someone else as well" pointed Makarov to another figure sitting by another table.

"Who?" wondered Happy the cat.

"!"

"Y..you.!" gasped Gray.

"What's HE doing here?!" asked Natsu, enraged. Frankenstein and Raskreia raised their eyes as well.

"Gajeel of the phantom 4?!" wondered Lucy aloud, shocked.

"W..wait please, Juvia brought him here" said the water mage, trying to be as convincing as possible.

"Juvia is one thing, but this punk was directly responsible for the destruction of the guild" protested Titinia.

"Hmph…I only need work. If not this guild, I'll simply jump over to the next" retorted Gajeel arrogantly.

"L..Levy isn't scared at all…it's fine" came the mumbling voice of Levy, who unconsciously hid behind a pillar. The death glares from the Shadow gear members was all too apparent.

"Now now….back then he was only acting on Master Jose's orders, so it couldn't be helped. It's the duty of an old man like me to guide lost young souls down the right path" replied Makarov, and what he said might've been convincing is he wasn't oogling the behind of a waitress walking by.

"Dammit, I refuse to work with this guy!" said Natsu, shaking his fists at the iron dragon slayer.

"Oh, don't worry, I have no intention of being buddy-buddy with the likes of you" he challenged back.

"Gajeel-kun was so lonely, so Juvia couldn't bear to leave him behind" whimpered Juvia, hiding behind Gray.

"It's fine isn't it?" said Frankenstein, stepping forward. It was Gajeel who backed away now, sweating a bit. He instinctively clutched his right arm, which also felt like it ached a bit at the place where the blond scientist had previously sliced him. "If something DID happen…..it wouldn't be too hard to put him in his place. I think you should trust Makarov on this one"

"Uhh…I dunno…it doesn't just feel right….ever since I saw the new guild" said Natsu groggily, until someone pushed him to the nearest seat.

"Shush now, Mira's concert is about to begin!" said that someone, while the lights dimmed and spotlights focused on a solitary figure holing a guitar in the stage. Frankenstein and Raskreia went over to where Raizel was all this time, and took seats next to him. Raizel was so immersed in drinking his tea that all this commotion missed him. Seated across them were Erza, Elfman, Gray, Tesamu, Natsu, Gajeel and the rest.

"~~I gently touch the desk where you used to sit~~" her heavenly voice filled the entire span of the guild, immediately putting everyone's tension to rest. It felt as if their souls were being filled with a warm light.

"~~Alone once more, today with the shadows~~" Lucy clapped her hands in admiration. Happy was lost in her melody.

"~~I look up to the sky and whisper a prayer~~" Even Erza, who was normally considered the 'iron lady' had a warm and pleasant smile on her face, blushing a bit.

"~~You're out there too, somewhere, under the vast sky~~I bear with the tears, even as I tremble~~" Gray and Elfman were filled with pride. "~~Even as the darkness threatens to swallow me~~don't you forget~~there will always be~~a place for you to come home~~"

"This is amazing!" complimented Lucy.

"She's truly awesome" added Cana, taking a sip from the mug she was holding, as if proposing a toast to that statement. "~~And people waiting there~~for you~~" finished the curvaceous white haired beauty. The entire hall erupted with cheers, chanting 'Mira-chan' from all sides.

"A song dedicated to soldiers going to war I presume?" said Frankenstein, genuinely impressed.

"Close…it's about mages going to missions" corrected Tesamu. "I've a lot of interest in songs, so I learnt a thing or two a long time back"

"It was quite beautiful" said Raskreia. Raizel too, had a small smile on his face as he drank tea. Gajeel watched bored, and then grinned mischievously, stepping on Natsu's foot hard, all the while grinning. The pink haired teen squealed out in pain, and raged at the long haired dragon slayer for doing so. Two mugs from nowhere hit both of them in their faces.

"Hey! Pipe down and don't interrupt Mira-chan's song!" shouted whoever threw the mugs.

"OK,WHO WAS THAT!" Screamed Natsu comically, flipping the table right in Lucy and Juvia's faces.

"Dammit Natsu stop screwing around!" cried Gray, knocking Erza's cake out of her hand. Erza looked as if her lover had just slipped out of her reach forever.

"M..my cake…" she whimpered, her face becoming dark. _"The top part is still ok..if I can just scoop it up.."_

"Shut the hell up and listen to nee-chan's song!" roared Elfman, knocking the wind out of someone who was unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity and stepping on the fallen cake.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Screamed Erza, completely pissed, delivering a kick to Elfman. Frankenstein watched as the entire table turned into a warzone in the matter of a few seconds. Raizel was still unperturbed, peacefully sipping his tea while Raskreia looked at them interested, although she did cringe at the language being thrown around.

"Ngaah! Someone hold down Natsu!" Makarov started sweating bullets.

"No time for a Ballad eh? Let's rock the house then!" exclaimed Mira cheerfully, playing a more rocking tune this time.

"Always comes down to this" stated Lucy sweatdropping, taking cover under a table. A flying chair came streaking towards Frankenstein, which he made sure to dodge reflexively. Natsu punched Gray comically, sending him flying through another table. He landed right in front of Raskreia, his clothes missing. The noble heiress watched horrified. Her red aura started growing more and more vibrant. Meanwhile Gajeel transformed his hands into clubs, batting away anything that came his way and sending most of them towards Natsu. At this point, each hit from him made Natsu more and more mad, and the number of bumps on his head were increasing and Natsu couldn't figure out why.

"Oh boy" commented Tesamu, dodging a beer glass that came flying towards him. Frankenstein facepalmed himself. It was quite mysterious how none of the projectiles actually hit Raizel, thought Frankenstein to himself. But perhaps he'd spoken too soon, as right after he thought about it, a broken handle came whizzing through the air and knocked Rai's teacup out of his hand. The poor cup fell out of the speechless noble's hands and crashed into the floor. THAT was it.

"W..why couldn't they just bottle it for one day" started Makarov slowly, but before he could say more, he shivered, sensing another more terrifying aura.

"….."

"…..master….."

"…tea…"

"…"

" **YOUR PUNY SQUABBLE HAS DESTROYED MASTER'S TEA!** " he let loose, the entire are enveloped by a dark and monstrous evil energy. The entire guild went completely silent, shock and terror freezing them in their place. Gajeel and Juvia were completely scared out of their wits, thinking about the fact that they'd never seen even Master Jose be _this_ scary. Makarov, being the first to recover, quickly sent someone nearby to get tea, and within seconds, it was again in Raizel's hands.

"Frankenstein, calm yourself" he said simply, and his master's words instantly made him calm down, withdrawing the aura he'd released before. He looked embarrassed, almost as if he couldn't believe he's lost control of his emotions.

"Holy shit man" said Gray, his heart still thumping, and his face still etched with fear.

"What the hell man" added Natsu, who almost pissed himself. Even Erza and Mira were taken aback a bit.

"Good thing Rai's here" said Lucy.

"That's too manly even for me" stuttered Elfman, shaken.

"I think I'm going to clean up the mess here" offered Macao, Wakaba and Romeo.

"Teacher gets super mad if someone messes up the place where he lives…I still remember the day I got scolded over when I accidentally knocked over his favorite coffee mug" recounted Tesamu.

"Perhaps you should tell us about things like that beforehand!" said the group around him in unison, eyes popping. And so, everyone became focused on cleaning the mess.

" _I can't believe that a human could have such an aura…or make one feel so unsettled about an issue as puny as this….I couldn't bring myself to believe it when Father and the other family leaders kept saying so…but looking at him with my own eyes, I can understand when they say that he is a difficult human to handle…."_ Thought Raskreia curiously.

"Frankenstein, perhaps you'd like to visit the town? See how the preparations are going?" suggested the master.

"Yeah, sounds good to me" he replied, and Makarov asked Mira to go along and guide Raskreia, Frankenstein, Tesamu and Raizel through the town and show them around town. The white haired beauty happily agreed, and escorted the 4 outside. Everyone else breathed a sigh of relief, and focused on getting things back to normal.

* * *

 **The town of magnolia, later in the evening**

The town was bustling with the noise and chatter from the festival. Stalls were being set up, banners being erected and posters being pasted everywhere. Festival mood permeated the atmosphere and this kept the people going. The gang visited a lot of food stalls that were set up, and Frankenstein quite honestly enjoyed the variety of food stuff he'd never tried before. Raizel and Raskreia were hooked on something called 'Ramen', while Tesamu liked to try all different types of chocolate. Gray was off enjoying himself in the ice popsicle stand, trying out different flavors, while Juvia accompanied him. Erza was off sparring opponents in the mock battles game stall, and Lucy was awed by the light show going on nearby. Whatever the case, everyone had their own thing that amazed them, and they engrossed themselves for the night. The fairy tail beauty contest was about to start soon, and Makarov had begged the noble gang to join them for the contest. Frankenstein was very reluctant at first, but then gave in when his master was ok with it and only agreed to join in if he was allowed to wear attire of his choosing. Makarov was unusually happy after that point.

When the time came, Makarov urged the members of Fairy Tail to gather around the guild, where the contest would be held. The townsfolk were the audience to them all, and the judges were Macao, Wakaba and Makarov.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Fairy Tail Beauties contest! This is the first time we have male participants as well, so we've made sure to include a separate spot for the most popular male and female contestant of Fairy Tail! Are you ready!?" boomed his voice throughout the stage, magically amplified. Cheers erupted from the audience.

"Without further ado, let's kickoff with the ladies first!" he said, and cheers erupted yet again.

* * *

 **Backstage**

"So guys, who do you think'll win?" asked Lucy, whilst holding up hair, changing into her dress.

"Me" came the unified voices of Mira and Erza. The two looked towards each other, gave challenging looks and continued to dress with more vigor.

"Psst Lu-chan" called out Levy "Don't you think _she_ might be the one though?" she said, pointing to Raskreia who pretty much wore a blank expression.

"Juvia thinks so too" Lucy sweatdrops, thinking how that could very well be true and looking at Mira and Erza still challenging each other, she could picture the aftermath.

"This will be interesting"

* * *

 **Backstage, with the boys**

The guys on the other hand, weren't all that much enthusiastic, being forced into it by Makarov, and also given that the boys never usually participated in this before. Elfman was trying out one of his 'manly' clothing brands, Gray was trying and praying that his shirt doesn't come off on stage, Natsu had very select clothes he could wear that were fireproof. Raizel was wearing the attire he usually wears while meeting the Lord, and Frankenstein wore a black tailcoat, Tesamu wore a cream white shirt and dark black pants, a long dark blue overcoat and a red scarf with leather straps in his chest.

"Man, this is kinda weird" said Natsu, looking at one set of clothes.

"Atleast you don't have to worry about automatically stripping" commented Gray.

"I heard from Makarov that the winner gets 10 million jewels" said Frankenstein slowly.

"What?!"

"Damn, that's..!"

"Hoh?! Now that's interesting indeed!"

"With 10 million, I can..!"

And with that 'pep talk', the enthusiasm at the boy's side was as high as the girl's side. Frankenstein was still thinking about Makarov's request from before, asking himself, his master and Tesamu to make a pose in front of the audience. Frankenstein outright refused, but was yet again overruled by his master who said that as people who have come over to this side of the world, they must abide by the rules of this place. Breathing a heavy sigh, Franky had no choice but to oblige.

"Look's like they're starting, let's go and watch!" said Natsu.

* * *

 **At the stage**

And so, after the introduction of the contestants, the participants started walking down the stage one by one. First up was Lucy, who wore a bunny suit for some reason. The cheers erupting in the audience were mostly male, and the embarrassment on her face was quite apparent. She received a 7 out of 10, but not before being asked some _really_ shady questions from Makarov, like her 3 sizes. Cana, with her bikini and card magic added some real magic to the atmosphere, and this time, it wasn't just the males who cheered. Levy tried to spice things up with her 'sexy nerd' dress, and although it did seem to work, it wasn't as good as Juvia's, who morphed into water and changed into yet another swimsuit which was good eye candy for the audience. Lucy whimpered from behind the backstage about how unfair it was using sex appeal. After her came Bisca, who made a couple of targets appear and shot them in appealing poses. Out of all the cheers, Azlack's was the loudest.

Starting from this point were the most interesting entrée's. Erza's performance included her exquipping into a gothic dress, and showing off her swordplay. The stadium was filled with echos of 'Titania!' or 'Erza!Erza!'. She gave a confident smirk, very sure that she'd just won the contest. Next up was Mira, who was originally planning to morph her face into Happy's face and then Gajeel's face, but then after hearing about the 10 million jewel bounty and that Tesamu and the others were participating, decided to get serious. She greeted the audience with her ever charming sweet smile, and then changed into a gothic styled red and black dress a dark black cloak, with fur covering her neck, and horn accessories for her head, dark black lipstick and rosy lips adorning her face. She did a seductive walk along the center of the stage, and then gave her best evil smirk, whilst posing. The audience roared in excitement, with many getting nosebleeds. She got a perfect score by all 3 judges, and the cheers went on for a full minute.

" _Hehe, this prize is as good as mine :D"_ she thought to herself, very confident. She gave a small bow and returned to the backstage.

"And for our last contestant, we have the mysterious beauty and a new member of Fairy Tail, Raskreia!" announced Makarov, and nothing could've prepared them for what she had in store for them. Along came the stunning beauty, with piercing ruby red eyes that stole their hearts away in a single glance, lips colored perfect red, her long raven black hair kept lose and fluttering softly to the wind, reflecting off the light perfectly as if to make her glitter. She wore a black tunic with gold cuffs on the sleeves, decorative red lining along the edges, long brown leather gloves, long black pants, a thick golden sash along her waist, long white stockings with golden ribbons for the edges and raven black boots. She simply walked forward, and tilted her chin up, and gave a piercing smirk, as if appearing confident and looking down on them.

The audience at this point lost it, with cheers from both men and women, many of them having nosebleeds. The male contestants who were watching from the other side were also at a loss for words. Natsu had a blush on his face, and could could feel his cheeks getting hot. Gray too, watched aghast. Even Raizel, who remained mostly uninterested, glanced for a look, interested. The judges wrote 20 out of 10 as the score, giving extra points for extra appeal. Mira and Erza watched aghast, with their mouths wide open, in disbelief. She was the most stoic one of them all, and yet, having done almost nothing, she won over the crowds of common folk yet so easily.

"With this there's no doubt ladies and gentlemen, the winner of the Ms Fairy Tail contest, is the stunning and mysterious, Raskreia!" announced the master, and the crowd erupted in cheers once again. The other contestants in the backstage sighed in disappointment, but Lucy and Levy knew this would be the outcome, and simply smiled at each other in understanding.

After the chaos of the female's contest died down, there was a short break before the contest for the men was to commence. This time, the ladies from the female beauties contest took to the audience seat, knowing that there were potential chances to get a good glance at a certain 3 potential eye candy contestants. As Makarov began announcing the names once again, the crowd began anticipating the kind of performances they would witness, being that there was never a male pageant before. The event kicked off with Natsu wearing an adventurer's robe, performing some cool fire manipulation magic.

Gray was next, who shed some light on the stage with his ice illusionary magic, adding glam and charm to his self, but also ended up getting his clothes (the upper half) removed by some chance, but instead of being penalized for it, he got bonus points instead. Juvia in particular, had hearts for eyes when she gazed on his naked torso in full detail. Elfman looked like the kind of hunk who would make it huge in a place like this, but ended up self destructing himself instead out of lack of confidence. Still, it wasn't all that bad considering that everyone had a good hearty laugh out of it, which lightened his mood.

Then came Tesamu, and Mira was suddenly more interested. He wore a pale cream shirt with a dark blue over cloak that fluttered in the wind. It had golden ropes connecting the section across his torso. He also had black leather pants, brown boots, and a golden yellow scarf. His deep yellow eyes shone in the spotlights of the stage. His deep blond hair wavered softly in the wind, and the gentle expression only added to his charm. Although he looked at the audience for the most part, his gaze was ever more slightly focused on the white haired curvaceous beauty who had a fierce blush on her face. Looking at her, he gave a wink and whipped his hair back. The audience went wild, and the section where he winked had a lot of 'Kyaahs' and 'ooh!'s coming from the girls. Mira was, on the other hand positively elated.

Frankenstein on the other hand, wore a simple tailcoat, gave a confident and predatory smile, which made fluttered the hearts of those that were directly in front of him. His perfectly arranged teeth only made it more intense to look. He came forward, and then performed a bow, like the most elegant butler of the world. And as the stage lights passed over him, he removed his glasses at precisely the right moment, making his whole face shine with glamor. The women all cheered out his name in unison, many asking to marry him. The girls of Fairy Tail had never seen him to be _this_ beautiful, a term they were unsure whether was applicable to a man. Even the stoic ones like Erza couldn't help but go red in face of his demeanor. It seemed as if skinship wasn't the only way to win the hearts of their eyes, they learnt. But, all this paled in comparison to what would happen next.

In came Raizel, wearing the same blank expression as before, in clothing that wasn't too extraordinary either. Like Raskreia, his ruby red eyes instantly won the hearts of many, and his stoic expression only added to it. Everything about him was perfect; his walk, his expressions, his arrogance, and his presentation. The females in the crowd were yet again wondering how a man could be so _beautiful and angelic._ But there were other plans for him tonight. Not happy with being scared so much, Natsu, Gray and the other previous contestants, decided to play a little prank on Franky, by playing a trick on what he cherished the most, his master. Standing directly above the stage, Gray combined his ice magic and Natsu's fire and had it pour down on the unsuspecting noblesse. At first, he was a bit surprised, and noticed that he was immediately drenched. The crowd went completely silent as well. Seeing as how his clothing was not the most thickest, the soaked shirt stuck to his skin becoming partially transparent. Water droplets were hanging off his face and other parts of him, and each one reflecting light at the right angles, making him glow. With a quick movement, Raizel arched his face towards the audience, the motion flipping his hair back a bit.

Pandemonium ensued. Many ladies had fallen over, unable to take in the charm. Even many men were positively blushing, and Frankenstein looked as if he'd just witnessed the end of the world, not to mention as light blush on his face. Gray and Natsu were at a loss for words, not at all expecting _this_ to happen.

"Oh my gosh!" squealed Lucy, blushing furiously.

"Kyaah!" cried Juvia, her eyes turned to hearts.

"Oh my oh my!" said Mira blushing like the others, covering her mouth.

"This is….!" Exclaimed Erza, her nose bleeding from the appeal. The chaos of the audience continued for a good couple of minutes, until Makarov decided he'd seen enough.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, as with our female's contest, I think you won't object to the results of the gent's contest, the winner is the mysterious and cool, Raizel of Fairy Tail!" he screamed and with that fireworks served as backdrops to his majesty. The crowd now tried to get on the stage, all of them trying to get their hands on the noblesse. But before that could happen, the blond scientist escorted his master backstage. And with that, the eventful night of the 1st day of the Fantasia Fair came to an end.

* * *

 **Phew, this is a looong chapter! Hope you liked it, and in this one, I really wanted to finish off the 'fun' events before I started the battle of fairy tail in another chapter. Well, I'm not that experienced with writing these kinds of things, I hope it came out well. And also, as you could've guessed, I'm mostly going for a Mira-Tesamu ship for now, but I'm also thinking about Mira-Erza ship. Not sure which one would be better. Perhaps you could put in your opinion. Anyways, thanks for reading, and next chapter will focus on the battle of fairy tail. See you until then!**


	17. Chapter 17: - The battle of Fairy Tail

**Sorry for the long wait, I was really busy after new year with my classes starting in full swing. Sorry to keep you guys waiting! Anyways, here's another chapter, and once again, thanks a lot for reading!**

* * *

 **Response to reviews: -**

 **Fayre Eferhild Di Rozalia : - Well, that was kinda what I was aiming for, it seemed to have worked better than I thought! Glad you liked it!**

 **Greer123 : - Thanks a lot!**

* * *

 **Chapter 17: - Battle of Fairy Tail**

After the festivities, Frankenstein and Raskreia left in the dead of the night, as agreed upon their plan. Not sure where to start looking for clues, Frankenstein decided it would be best to look around the tower of heaven, where he encountered Tesamu in this world. The perpetrators would surely come snooping around, looking for clues as to what transpired there. Raskreia on the other hand proceeded straight to Lukedonia, like the shadows moving swiftly and silently through the calm night. Although it was uncommon for the two to leave unannounced, especially after the last day's festivities, the seriousness of things that had happened at the tower and the things that Tesamu told them about swept away those thoughts.

The festival continued as the morning rays of the sun were drowning out the shadows of the night. Tesamu was quick to explain the departure of his master and the noble heiress. Makarov didn't seem to mind, seeing as how Frankenstein had previously mentioned it so. The contest stage was lined with the participants of previous night's contest, awaiting the distribution of prizes. The audience was in high spirits, mainly in expectations of having another sneak peek at the nobles in their glam, but those dreams came crumbling down when the announcement of their absence was made. First the prizes to the male contestants was to be handed out, with the female beauties waiting in the backstage.

"Geez, this is embarrassing" commented Gray, not used to being in front of so many people, and especially not with so many in the audience eying him so.

"Still, it could be worse….atleast it's not as bad as _that"_ said Elfman, obviously talking about the magazine of Fairy Tail that came out recently. This had done more harm than good to their reputation, something that Makarov was not pleased about. It was partly their fault after all, for the ruckus they caused when the journalist had come over. Natsu and Gray shivered at the thought of what would've happened if Frankenstein happened to see a certain page detailing the mini figurines of him, Rai and Raskreia that was being sold at their stalls. Needless to say, that article was _not_ the most elegant one.

"Sure glad Frankenstein isn't here for once, otherwise he'd…"

"Stop…don't say anything further" pressed Gray, deadpanned.

"Where's that blond guy? Tesamu?" asked Elfman, looking around and changing the subject.

"From what I heard, he's off to find a place for Rai to recover in peace. 'Pparently he's still recovering from the events at the tower of heaven" explained the ice mage.

"….. **Since the winner of the male pageant is unable to attend today's event, the prize shall be handed over to the guild master. We shall now proceed to the ladies..!** " boomed the magnified voice of Max who was acting out the role of an anchor.

"And that's our cue" mentioned Gray, and the males made their way to the back stage. But what they saw there stopped all their movements.

".. **As embarrassing as it is to say, because of the inability of Ms Raskreia to join us today as well, we ask the runner up, Ms Mira to pick up the award for her..** "

"I'll gladly take that, thank you very much" came the silky voice of Evergreen, someone that they were not expecting to hear in _this_ place and _this_ time. The curtains to the backstage unfurled themselves, revealing the shocked expressions of Gray, Natsu and Elfman, together with life like stone statues of all the female contestants, expressions of shock etched on their onyx faces.

"…Y…you are..!" exclaimed Makarov, running to the stage.

"… **t..this is bad…everyone, make a run for it!** " shouted Max, pointing the way for the audience towards the exit.

"..she…she turned them all to stone..!" gasped Gray.

"You imbecile! What are you doing?!" shouted the old master. A clap of thunder and a fierce flash lit the entire stage. Burnt splinters of the stage flew in every direction as the mass of audience scrambled to the nearest exit. The flash revealed the figures of the lightning mage, along with two other members of the famous thunder tribe.

"It's Laxus and the thunder legion!" alerted Elfman.

"Laxus?! What are you doing here?!" questioned his grandfather, with a serious and concerned look.

"The real battle of Fairy Tail starts now, old man!" he thundered in retaliation.

"Battle of Fairy Tail…?"

"I'm already tired of this farce….I cant have you dragging the name of Fairy Tail through the mud. From now on, we play by **my** rules" said Laxus. "It's very simple, with the town as the battleground, the strongest survivor wins. And naturally I don't need to tell you what happens if you refuse participation" he remarked, casually sending a bolt of lightning inches away from the stone statue of Lucy.

"THERE ARE THINGS THAT CANT BE TAKEN AS A JOKE, LAXUS!" roared Makarov.

"Of course, I'm serious. For each rule you break, I'll zap them one by one. The fight starts **now!** " he announced, sending another bolt of lightning into the sky. A table nearby exploded, being launched into the sky.

"Now isn't that much more simpler to understand? I'm all fire up!" chimed Natsu.

"Heh….look who it is" smirked the lightning mage.

"Finally….I can kick your ass!" challenged the pink haired mage, charging at him blindly. The lightning mage didn't even look at him before zapping him into oblivion.

"Tch…figures this would happen…hold your horses, dumbass!" chided Gray.

"If you want to free these beauties, you'll have to get the 4 of us….there's a hundred of you, so this is totally at your advantage. The time limit is 3 hours. If the time expires, the statues will turn to dust" said Evergreen, the mysterious beauty of the thunder tribe trio.

"Don't screw with me…" trembled Makarov, his form shaking.

"The battle ground is Magnolia. The moment you encounter one of us, the battle commences" she added. Makarov reverted to his giant form.

"This only goes so far, Laxus" he snarled, his form emanating power and rage.

"You really should calm down, old geezer. Take your time and enjoy this entertainment we've prepared" sneered Laxus, before disappearing with another flash of lightning.

"Laxus!" hissed Makarov, shaking his fists. "That absolute moron!"

"Don't worry gramps, we'll take care of this" assured the ice mage, heading towards the city center.

"I've to save nee-chan and the others!" declared Elfman, doing the same.

"How dare he play hide and seek with us?"

"We'll smash him to pieces!"

"Damn brat! I'll teach him to learn his place!" roared Makarov, charging with the others, but not before smacking his head flat into some kind of invisible force field.

"What?!" Suddenly, floating letters in mid air appeared. It was clear who was behind this.

"This is….Fried's enchantments…"observed the old guild master. It read-

"Those above the age of 80, stone statues and humans with special powers cannot pass"

"The hell? This is childish! To think that this actually works just because someone said so!" remarked Gray surprised.

"Fried's magic is enchantment magic. It's a form of magic designed to trap someone in a place by inscribing magic into the runic language. It takes time to set up, but is incredibly effective as a trap. Those inside the space enclosed by the runes are subjected to the rules of that space. Just like the one above" explained Makarov.

"So that means he never intended for Master to participate in this in the first place" added the ice mage. "And humans with special powers? Did he intend that for Rai and the others?"

"Most likely. After all, Raizel, Frankenstein and Raskreia are incredibly powerful…having them as enemies would not be advantageous to them" theorized Makarov.

"Tch…that's just dirty" added Gray. "Well, whatever, I'll just make sure to give him a good beating in your place then gramps." He said, dashing towards the town. "And just to make it clear, I ain't holding back just 'cuz he's your grandson"

"… _.Laxus…what are you thinking..? No matter, is there anyone who can actually stand up to him? Erza might stand a chance but…"_ That's when he noticed that Reedus, the artist mage standing behind the pillar. Quickly formulating a plan, he ordered him to go find Porlyusica to help undo the petrification of the female mages. Perhaps Frankenstein would've been more helpful, but searching for him would be much harder than Porlyusica. Just then, Natsu jerked awake, having recovered from the lightning mage's casual attack. A hopeful glimmer appeared in Makarov's eyes.

" _If he gets serious, he may just…!"_

"Natsu! The festival has begun! Laxus is somewhere in Magnolia!" he said, pushing him on.

"All right! LAXUS! HERE IS COME!" shouted salamander enthusiastically, running at full speed. He could practically see himself lunging at Laxus somewhere, except that he crashed into the barrier instead. The jaws of Makarov and happy nearly hit the floor from disbelief.

"Why?!" asked happy, eyes popping.

* * *

 **Inside Natsu's 'inner world'**

" **Heh, it figures** " smirked the shadow of a gargantuan figure, with it's claws resting casually on it's chin. " **After all, I, Igneel, a 400 year old dragon rests here in this space which is essentially a part of him. Still, I can't reveal myself just yet for this childish squabble he has gotten himself into….I must persevere till the Dragon King's festival…..I wonder if Raizel-nim and the others have already noticed my presence here within the boy…I look forward to the day I can speak with them face to face** "

* * *

 **Back to Magnolia**

Just then, multiple boxes began appearing in the screen, with various names in them, and a huge title on the top. This one read-

"Fairy Tail battle report" The boxes themselves seemed to have the matches and their results.

"Jet and Droy vs Azlack. Victor Azlack. Max vs Warren. Victor Warren. Wacaba vs Macao, match commences. Miki has engaged 4 members. Kulov vs Raki, both unable to fight. Remaining participants, 64" Makarov began to tremble. He knew, that somewhere in town, all these battles were being fought, and couldn't bring himself to picture the battles being fought between his 'brats'.

"You fools….you just had to go ahead and do it" he said, shivering.

"ARGH! This stupid barrier, I wanna join too!" protested the fire mage.

"The heck is goin' on?!" he repeated, pressing hard against the wall.

"Calm down, Natsu, doing that wont help" said Makarov, giving him a small chop in the head. "And why does this excite you, that guild members are hurting each other? If we don't put an end to this, those petrified will be turned to dust!"

"Aw come on gramps, even an ass like Laxus wouldn't go that far" he said, giving an assuring smile. Makarov was taken aback, that Natsu still harbored belief in Laxus even after all this. That feeling was broken when the screen in the barrier now displayed the number of active mages to be 42 from 64, indicating that less than half the original contenders remained.

Elsewhere, in the outskirts of Magnolia, Fried intercepted a gasping Reedus trying to make it out of town to get Porlyusica. The ice mage Gray encountered the doll user Bixlow. Elfman had the misfortune of running into the dangerous beauty Evergreen. Forced to engage in a blindfolded battle due to Evergreen's eye magic, he had no choice but to use his full body beast takeover against her.

"What an ironic appearance for someone with a name as cute as yours" she taunted him. "But even if you can fight me blind by relying on your sense of smell, my Fairy Dust magic makes even that useless!" she declared confidently. " **Fairy Bomb, Gremlin!** " she cried out, and parts of the dust coalesced into glowing orbs and exploded where Elfman stood, effectively stopping him. The screen near Makarov updated the box for "Evergreen vs Elfman" to "Victor, Evergreen". Another update came in, which now said "Reedus disqualified for breaking the rules"

"Aah they took out Reedus and Elfman! Now there's no one to get Porlyusica and no one but Gray left to beat the Raijinshuu!" protested the flame user, shaking his fists.

Makarov shook in desperation, wondering what he could do in the hopeless situation they were in. If only…

"What's going on here..? I heard a lot of commotion and noise that sounded like explosions…" inquired the voice emerging from the basement of the guild. The familiar blond figure of the newcomer emerged from the entrance of the basement.

"Tesamu!" exclaimed the master.

"He was still here!" grinned Natsu, excited. Just then, a quiver in the air next to them materialized, and the familiar and unpleasant form of the lightning mage came into view.

"Laxus?!" exclaimed Happy.

"Now then, how does it feel to watch your 'brats' pound one another to the ground?"

"It's a physic projection…" noted happy the cat.

"Laxus you foolish…"

"With Erza out of the picture, there's no one left to stand up to the Raijinshuu, let alone me" he smirked, grinning madly. "So, do you surrender?"

"What the….what's happening?" asked Frankenstein's disciple, looking for a clue.

"What's this? A new guy? Guess I must've missed him somehow. No matter, this only makes things more interesting."

"Laxus has taken them as hostages, and is forcing the other guild members to fight each other in battles all over the town…." Said Makarov, pointing to the petrified statues of the females, giving the short version of the events.

"Huh..? Laxus? Is it that guy?" asked the blond student.

"Yeah, that's Master's grandson" answered Happy. "We're already down to 40 people from 100. If they don't defeat Evergreen, the one who cast the petrification magic on them, within 3 hours, they'll all turn to dust"

"No way…why is your grandson doing this….no. Right now, we should focus on undoing the petrification.." he said, moving over to the statues.

"Give it up, there's nothing you can do" said Laxus, quite confident. Tesamu ignored him. He flinched a bit when he saw Mira's statue, a ghost of a smile still etched on her stone face, yet her face showing surprise.

"I hate to admit it, but Evergreen's eye magic is very unique…only she can undo the spell" said Makarov.

"Dammit, if only this barrier didn't exist!" said Natsu, punching the invisible wall.

*beep* The screen now had a new box, which said "Bixlow vs Gray, both fighters are unable to continue"

"No….!"

"Gyahahahahahaa! It figures! But to think he took out Bixlow….guess it wasn't all talk after all! So what about it? If you consider relinquishing the title of master to me, I might consider putting an end to this" he demanded, his maniacal grin still in place.

"That won't be necessary" said Tesamu, deadly serious and wrapping something around his hands. "Things haven't completely fallen according to your plans, it seems" he continued, coming towards the psychic projection.

"Side characters should know their place and stay where they belon- *crack*

The projection quivered once again and disappeared. "Looks like all is not lost after all" said Tesamu, holding a worn out leather whip.

"What's that?!"

"This is a powerful weapon from my place called Vampire Killer. It was on Lucy's waist, the only thing amongst those statues that hadn't turned to stone. This is because of its ability to act as a magic canceller"

"No way…"

"I assume my teacher must've gifted this to her, since he was the one who had it the last time I checked. In any case, like you witnessed earlier, we can use this to revive those petrified by Evergreen's magic. But I won't be able to undo it for everyone…maybe just for one person. This whip's power can only be drawn out by a certain clan of people, and if wielded by anyone else, it's power is greatly diminished. Still, it should be enough to cancel out the petrification spell"

"Awesome!" chimed Natsu "Then do ya think it could work on this barrier? It's set up so that no one above the age of 80 or stone statues or humans with special powers can pass. I've been stuck here because of this stupid barrier and it's pissin' me off"

"Hrmm…I'm not sure about why such an absurd rule exists, but it can't hurt to give it a shot.." the blond student went ahead and whipped the wall, and the space in front of them rippled, but the barrier itself was intact. "As I thought"

"No use huh…" sighed Makarov. "In that case, since you said you could undo one petrification, how about undoing Erza's? She has the highest chance of retaliating against them"

"I was going to propose the same thing. For some reason, the spell's hold on Erza isn't as strong as on the others. I'm confident this would work. But I can also help myself. I'm not very strong, but I think I can handle atleast one of the Raijinshuu. I'll leave Vampire Killer in your hands Makarov-san. Just wrap it around her body, and it should undo the spell. I'll go intercept the remaining enemies" But as soon as he'd said that, he too felt the familiar feeling of slamming into a wall. The shock was apparent with the others as well.

" _Wait…why was I….?!"_ thought the confused Tesamu, his palms against the invisible wall. " _Could it be because now that I have werewolf powers, I'm not completely human? Or because of the age limit? Then….how long was I experimented on by those bastards…."_ He thought, shaking in anger.

"Well..this is….I don't even know what's going on anymore…." Said Natsu, pretty much giving up.

"Ghihihih…looks like you could use some help" rasped Gajeel, finally making a move, all while eating pieces of metal off the tableware.

"Don't eat the table!" reminded Happy, eyes popping.

"Gajeel!" glared Natsu.

"So..can we expect your help?" asked Makarov hopefully, to which the iron dragon slayer merely smirked.

"'ve a bone to pick with him anyways" he grunted, only to be stopped by the barrier. If their jaws could pass through the floor, it would have for that is how shocked they were.

"Wh..why?! Don't tell me this nonsensical barrier just works however it wants!" said Natsu deadpanned. Makarov was in the same condition.

* * *

 **Inside Gajeel's 'inner world'**

" **Ghyahahahahahahahaha! I can't take it anymore! If only that punk knew!** " came the thunderous claps of comical laughter of the mighty Metalicana, the iron dragon. " **Still, I can't be goin' around revealin' myself just yet for something as hilarious as this just to let him pass some idiotic barrier….then again, that bastard Frankenstein….actin' like he hasn't sensed me inside this guy and even went and sliced off his arm….is that guy taking revenge for eating his instruments all those centuries ago? Cocky bastard** " smirked Metalicana, but not out of any ill thoughts but rather quite nostalgic about the whole thing. " **It'd be fun to meet once again, if he's still 'round when the Dragon King Festival happens** "

* * *

 **Back to the battle of Fairy Tail**

The screen beeped once again, with a new box overlaying all the previous ones. It simply said "Remaining participants, 3"

It took a while for Makarov to understand what that meant. "Wait, don't tell me that its talking about the 3 here…" he said out aloud, sweatdropping.

"We weren't even included in the numbers?! That's savage!" said Happy, talking about himself and Makarov.

"Don't fret just yet Makarov-san. We still have this remember?" said Tesamu, showing him the whip. Without saying anything else, he went up to Erza, and wrapped her body with the whip, hoping it would be enough. There was silence and nothing else. He scratched his head, and then as if something hit him, he cocked his head suddenly and poured a bit of magical energy into the whip, and a faint glimmer had told him that he'd succeeded. The stone covering Erza started to crack, which initially made the master and the others skeptical, and Gajeel even suggested they melt some iron and weld her together, causing Tesamu to be in a loss for words. But soon enough, the familiar form of Erza came to life, her face in obvious confusion. More surprised were the people around her, and Tesamu heaved a sigh of relief.

"Wh..what the…? What's going on here?! I remember seeing Evergreen before I..did I..get turned to stone?" she asked.

"That's right. But with the help of this, I was able to free you. Also, now that I see properly, your right eye seems a bit different from your left one. Perhaps that helped in lowering the strength of the curse..?"

"I see…that makes sense" thought the red haired beauty to herself, and then looked at Tesamu "It seems I owe you one. I shall not waste the chance to fight that you've given me. If Evergreen was here, then I can assume Laxus and the rest of the Raijinshuu are causing some trouble again. Leave this to me"

"But do you know what's happened so far?" questioned Happy.

"No…I don't remember anything after seeing Evergreen" she replied.

"Very well. So as of now…" continued Makarov, and he explained all that had transpired.

"I see…they really have taken things too far…now that I'm back in action, the number of contestants has increased as well" she pointed out to the screen, which now read 4 instead of 3. The number changed once more to '5'. Erza gave a small smirk, after she understood what happened.

"There's one more…? Who…?" wondered Tesamu.

"It seems that man has returned, now that the guild has been threatened" she said "The one whose face remains hidden and one of the top 3 fighters in the guild…..Mystogan"

* * *

 **Finally managed to put out another chapter!** **Next time I'll focus on the major battles that'll happen and also on Frankenstein's investigation and Raskreia's interaction with the Lord (I'll finally get the chance to write about Lord :D ).** **In case you're wondering where Vampire Killer came out all of a sudden, think back to chapter 8. This is after the Phantom Lord battle, where Frankenstein gives it to Lucy. And like I mentioned, I intend to end the battle of fairy tail arc in the next 1-2 chapters. And as you may have noticed, I've avoided going into too much detail about some of the battles that happened, since they don't change from the original Fairy tail version and so I thought it'd waste space and material writing it here. Anyways, see you next time, and thanks for reading!**


	18. Chapter 18: - Still more fighting

**Since I'm in the flow, thought I'd keep it going as long as it's there. Here's another chapter for you guys! Enjoy!**

 **Oh and I should mention one thing that you might have a question about. How was Vampire Killer, a magic canceller and one that even Virgo thought was powerful unable to undo the petrification spells on everyone. I suppose there are 2 reasons. Like mentioned, Vampire Killer needs to be used by the clan members to be used with its full power. Otherwise, the power hidden in the whip can't be drawn, although it can be sensed by those in the spirit realm, like Virgo. The 2** **nd** **reason is that it works best on beings like the undead, spirits and stuff more than the living. This is also why Virgo can sense its enormous power. Hope that clears it up!**

* * *

 **Response to reviews**

 **9721yellow : - Thanks a lot! Here's another chapter!**

 **SleeplessForest27 : - Thank you so much!**

* * *

 **Chapter 18: - Still more fighting**

 **Lukedonia**

The enigmatic lord was pacing about the throne room, not because he was lost in thought, but simply to pass the time. The interruption of his routine was a pleasant one. Raskreia came walking towards him with a serious look, but the Lord only looked at her with welcoming eyes.

"Raskreia, this is a pleasant surprise! Missing your dear father perhaps?" he asked jokingly, and yet with a sense of happiness.

"Father….there is some urgent matter that I must speak with you with" she replied.

"I see….something pressing enough for you to leave Earthland by yourself?"

"Yes…this is a very grave matter"

"Then we should call in the gang..I mean the family leaders of course" he chuckled. But Raskreia sharply interrupted him.

"No, we can't father…..I mean, I request to speak with you alone" replied the black haired beauty, with insisting looks.

"It's fine, you don't need to be that formal with your own father…" he answered, "But why not the family leaders? Surely they must be informed if anything serious happens"

"Because the nature of this issue is such that it involves the clan leaders. Hence we cannot call them in here, not yet atleast" she answered. The lord was silent for a while.

"I see…..I can already tell what this could be about…go on then. There are no others here in the throne room" he said, more serious in tone. He helped himself to the throne, taking a comfortable sitting stance.

"Very well. Recently, we happened to encounter someone from this world…someone neither human nor werewolf or noble. Frankenstein's disciple to be exact" she said. The Lord raised his eyes.

"Really now? Now this is news! I imagine that blond peacock must've been in for quite a shock….although now that I think about it, wasn't his disciple supposed to be dead? Didn't that locket which Urokai used to provoke Frankenstein in that battle belong to him?" he asked. "What's he doing all the way in Earthland then? Was it Frankenstein?"

"Yes it was the very same disciple. However, when Frankenstein met him, he had no recollection of who he was. He was under mind control. Frankenstein managed to bring him back to his own self, and learnt of a lot of things. Firstly, it seemed that Tesamu was being experimented on by the group called Union, who experimented with Werewolf and Noble powers, along with the magic of their world. Tesamu was capable of using werewolf like abilities and also magic through the use of lacrima. It's unsure how long this has been going on. But Tesamu clearly remembers that there were a couple of Noble family leaders who were part of the Union". She then continued to go on into the full details of what they had uncovered, and their current plan for the same. This genuinely shook the Lord, but it also made him understand everything that Frankenstein had previously warned the Lord about.

"I see…..when Frankenstein first came here, I was incredulous about his claims that one of our own has lost their way. But I never imagined that it would be true to _this_ extent…how troublesome" he sighed, slumping into his chair. "So I suppose we have no choice but to leave it to that peacock" Raskreia found it hard to believe that her father could remain calm even at a time like this, making jokes even. "Though it might be true that by trying to investigate the family leaders, I would accuse them of being traitors, we're not completely helpless either. I think I'll personally find out what's going on. This way, I can leave the clan leaders out of this and not arouse suspicion from whoever's behind all this….honestly, I truly want to believe this is all a misunderstanding. I'd be so happy if I was proven wrong"

Raskreia nodded in approval. "That would be very helpful, Lord. If needed, I could assist you here" But the Lord nodded in the negative.

"Nah, that would defeat the purpose of doing this without anyone knowing about it. I suggest you quietly return to Earthland as if our meeting never happened. It would be trouble if someone saw you and this could mean trouble for our investigation. I'll be sure to let Raizel know if something did turn up." he said, getting up. "What's the matter? You still look like you have something you want to say"

"No…it's just that…for you, the Lord of all Nobles to be forced to do something as low as this…..I..I'm unsure of what to say" she said, her tone slathered in sadness. He went up to her, and gently stroked her head.

"Raskreia….we are not perfect. Even beings like us nobles are just another class of living creatures of this planet. Each one of us has our own reasons for doing what we do, our own desires and our own wishes. Change is something that is ever prevalent, and as such, it is not so odd that we nobles would change too. Look at you for example. Gone is the girl who was almost as uncaring and unmoving as the walls of this castle. Instead, she is now filled with life, vibrant and with care for others. Everything changes for the better or worse, and unlike you, some others here did so for the worse. We'll just have to accept that. I'm sure if Raizel were to learn who the perpetrators were, he would simply accept all of their actions. Let not such thoughts put you down, and just go on and live out life to your fullest. Whatever needs to happen will happen" he said in a gentle consoling tone. A wave of gratitude filled within her.

"Yes Lord….father" she said, before giving a hug. The Lord too returned the same. She let go, gave a small bow before returning the way she came. The lord watched her go over the horizon of the long castle corridor. He breathed a sigh.

"Well then…I suppose it's time to get to work"

 **Magnolia**

Erza scarlet left the confines of her guild with the determination to put an end to things. Mystogan was somewhere in the area, gradually heading towards the epicenter of this entire saga. Natsu, Gajeel and Tesamu were helplessly stuck behind. After roaming about the city looking for Evergreen in order to undo the petrification spell, even going through the men's bathhouse somehow in the process, she knew her search had ended when multiple spears came hurling towards, which she dodged by a hair's breadth.

"How DID you manage to de-petrify yourself? Not that it matters anymore, things are more fun this way" came a mocking voice from above one of the signboards of the shops. The sole female member of the Raijinshuu stood proud and arrogant, malice emanating from her eyes.

"Calling yourself Titania and the queen of the fairies…..it really bugs me to no end. I'm the only one there is who is worthy of such a title!" she made a self declaration, and went into attack mode. The fairy dust that was scattered all over the area told Erza exactly what's coming. Whenever some spots in the dust started glowing, she'd do her best to avoid the explosions that followed. This went on till the dust was blown away due to the bombs. Erza was mostly ok, but not without slight burn marks here and there. Her armor prevented injury to her vital areas.

"That was quite the impressive feat, withstanding my Gremlin bombs. But this ends here!" she appeared in front of the red haired beauty, raising her glasses. "Now turn to stone!"

"Not so fast!" came the reply, as the spell failed to work.

"Wha…?! How in the…" She noticed after that Erza's armor and weapon had a shining yellow lacrima crystal. Her right eye was emanating the faintest of glows as well.

"Tch…I see now….you used the de-petrify larcima to counter my spell….and it looks like your right eye had something to do with it as well"

"Indeed…..my right eye is an artificial one. Petrification works on living things and fails on others. My right eye is essentially not completely living. It alone wasn't enough to counter the strong petrification spell. But combined with these larcima crystals, it proved sufficient. Now that technique will no longer work" explained Titania.

"Hoh? But to think that the great Titania who prides herself to be a swordswoman would use little trinkets in battle…." She sneered.

"That may as well be, but a certain man once told that in a fight, there are things more important than one's own pride. This is a battle to save my comrades. Hence as such, I'll use whatever necessary to do so. My pride is a small price to pay" she retorted, beginning her counterattack. Summoning dozens of swords, she sent them flying in different trajectories while attacking with the 2 in her hands simultaneously. She sliced apart a water tower that came in the way, and dispatched the various spears that came flying.

"Please tell me you have something better than that" taunted Erza.

"Don't get too overconfident now!" she remarked back. "Try this on for a change! Fairy Machine Gun; Leprechaun!" Multiple magical bullets plummeted towards the red head, few of them hitting their mark. But she wasn't done just yet, and sent another torrent of needles. She flailed her many swords to minimize damage.

"Kuh! Guarh!" cried out Erza in pain, sustaining injuries. She swung her swords in an attempt at retaliation.

"Haha too slow!" cooed Evergreen, flying around the battlefield, avoiding her attacks.

"Come back here!" The red haired beauty chased after her, but to no avail.

"Let's see how you deal with this!" cried out Ever, multiplying the number of needles after her.

" _That much_?! _This is going to be tough…..it reminds me of Frankenstein's spike attack….wait, that's it! I can try that!"_ Erza stopped in her tracks, let all but one of her swords disappear, and waited for the right moment. Ever watched, confused.

When the needles were within her sword's reach, she began her flurry of strikes, aiming in multiple directions. The furious sounds of the metal cutting into the needles permeated the air. Some needles passed through harmlessly, others didn't. But most of them lay on the ground, shattered.

"W..what was that?!" exclaimed Ever. Erza breathed out slowly.

"Omnislash…" she said, looking at her sword. "A failed attempt….I could only get in 8 strikes"

" _You mean to tell me that was just 8 hits?!"_

"Apart from being incomplete" she said, and winced as her right hand tensed up, and the muscles sprained and pulled. "It's kickback is indeed a problem. But with this, you have no more options" With a quick sleigh of her left hand, she sent 2 swords at Ever, pinning her to the wall. "Now, undo your petrification. Although you were extreme in your actions, you are still a member of the guild. I wont hold it against you if you release your spell"

"Ohohoh….arent you being a little to carefree? My eye powers have one more option…I can turn them to dust right from here, without needing to move a muscle. **So what are you waiting for?! Strip and prostrate yourself naked before me! IF you don't, I don't need to tell you what happens to those in the guild..?"**

Erza averted her eyes, ex-quipped and changed to her heaven's wheel armor, summoning hundreds of swords, her eyes filled with bloodlust.

" **I see….you'd rather die than give up. So be it then, these blades shall grant your wish. In doing so, I shall avenge the maidens who fell by your hands** " she thundered. Ever was white as a sheet, sweating profusely. She screamed out in horror, and whimpered her statement of surrender.

"And that's how you bluff" said Erza, back in her normal tone. _"This is…. somewhat fun. I wonder if this is how Frankenstein feels every time he threatens his foes…fufufu"_ thought the red haired beauty to herself, self-amused. She twirled her sword around in her hand in a circular motion and sheathed in behind her back.

* * *

 **Back in the guild halls**

The statues of the ladies cracked and came back. Makarov and the others gasped, and heaved a heavy sigh of relief.

"Wha….where..?" wondered Lucy confused.

"What happened….I remember seeing Evergreen…" said Cana. Others simply had confused looks. Makarov gave a short explanation of what transpired. There were sounds of mutual disagreement and some others like Mira were disheartened that one of their own would take things this far.

"Wait wait wait, hold up a minute" called out the flame mage. "Now, he may have taken the wrong approach, but I don't believe that a contest to find out the strongest of the guild was necessarily wrong. So all I'm saying is, don't be too harsh on the guy"

"Natsu…"

Natsu continued his enthusiastic attempting in coaxing everyone to participate in the battle, while the others continued to persuade him to calm down. Just then, the air around them seemed to flicker. Several black flags floated all over the place, with a broken skull image on each one of them. The magnified and distraught voice of the lightning mage could be heard coming out of them.

" **Looks like you've lost your motive to keep this going, so in order to change that, I've activated the hall of thunder** "

"THE HALL OF THUNDER?!" Exclaimed the old master.

"You have one hour. Still think you can be so lax? What will you do, 'master'?" And with that, the voice died and so did the flags.

"HOW DARE YOU TRY TO DRAG INNOCENT CIVILIANS INTO THIS, LAXUS?!" Roared the master, but in doing so, accelerated his condition. He fell down clutching his chest in pain.

"Master!"

"He needs his medicine!" cried out Mira.

"What's the hall of thunder?" asked Tesamu.

"Take a look" suggested Cana, sweating a bit. The team looked at the sky, and sure enough, they could see multiple spheres crackling with electricity, floating over the entire town.

"Are they….lacrima?" asked Juvia uncertainly.

"I don't like the looks of that" said Gajeel.

"The hall of thunder is exactly as the name implies. Each of those lacrima are charged with an immense amount of lightning magic. When activated, the lacrima rain down destructive bolts of lightning within they are they are circumscribing. In this case, the entire town." Explained Bisca.

"Damn…" cursed Tesamu.

"Not gonna happen" said Bisca confidently, and took out one of her rifles. She took a calculated aim, and fired at one of the lacrima, which exploded harmlessly.

Or so it seemed. While she was celebrating her success, a mysterious force electrocuted her, rendering her unconscious. The others nearby gasped in horror.

"Wha..what happened?" cried Lucy in terror.

"Living link magic. I should've expected things to be this complicated. Anyone who harms the lacrima is countered with the lightning magic stored in them. This way, it insures against someone destroying them that easily" explained Cana.

"Dammit….what can we do then?" asked Natsu.

"Hmm…I'd like to check something" said Tesamu, looked at the sky and charged his fists with golden flames. The others nearby gasped, for this was the first time everyone knew what powers Tesamu had.

" _He uses the same kind of powers as Natsu…?"_ wondered Mira curious.

He shot at one of the other lacrima, but missed his mark. "Tch" he sighed "Once more then….Should've known that would happen. After all, I have next to zero battel experience and this is not a fantasy world where the main protagonist always hits their mark no matter what" he said, almost to himself. This naturally confused the others.

"You're sounding more and more like old man Frankenstein" said Natsu. Mira giggled. Cana, levy and the others had a small hearty laugh. It certainly lightened the tension in the air.

"It's it fun? This guild?" asked Juvia to Gajeel.

"Hmph. Weird you mean" he retorted, but his feelings were another story.

"Anyways, that's so cool! I didn't know you used fire magic as well!" chimed Natsu enthusiastically.

"Well, it's nothing special. Anyways, I have a plan" he said, took aim again, and this time, it did hit it's mark. He braced himself for what was coming.

"Gah!" he cried out, the stinging pain spreading throughout his being.

"Tesamu! Are you alright?! Why did you…?" asked the white haired beauty, but stopped midway and gasped. The disciple got up, almost unfazed, and whatever burn marks he had started to fade rapidly.

"..they're healing…" she said in a small voice.

"Yeah. It's one of my abilities. Although it's not very powerful, I can heal much faster than normal and as long as it's not any of my vital organs, I can recover damage" he explained. Although the injury itself was slowly fading, his pain was another matter.

"How's that possible…." Asked Lucy shocked.

"I don't know of any magic that allows you to do something like that either" said Cana.

"But hey, isn't he also a 'special human' like Frankenstein and the others? Could that be why?" asked Levy. Tesamu nodded.

"If in case it comes down to it, I can take care of them. That much wont be enough to kill me, but I'd still prefer to avoid that if possible" he said.

"But there's alteast over 300 lacrima…." Said Mira

"The damage I felt from that one was nothing. Sure 300 might be a bit too much, but I'll work something out by then….still, if only I could just pass this barrier!" he said gritting his teeth.

"Barrier? Oh yeah, this enchantment right? You know, I should be able to break this one! Deciphering runic magic is my specialty after all!" assured Levy confidently.

"R..really? You can do that?" asked Natsu. Gajeel's interest piqued as well.

"Yeah. I believe you three what it takes to handle this. While I work on the enchantment, the rest of us can handle things on the outside." She suggested. The other girls agreed.

"Then, would it be ok if I helped you?" offered the disciple. "I couldn't do anything about this because I don't know the runic language. But if it works on some sort of algorithm, the two of us working on it might be faster"

"Works for me!" she replied, putting on her reading glasses.

And thus the mages began moving out, one after the other with a fixed plan and fixed destination, like clockwork. Makarov and Bisca were laid to rest beside Raizel who was himself in sleep. The other girls spread out throughout town in hopes of putting an end to things and find a way to shut off the hall of thunder. Levy and Tesamu were working with several notes besides them, discussing and debating theories. Levy was impressed by Tesamu's know how of algorithms and logic. With her helping him out with interpreting the runes, Tesamu would quickly work out an algorithm to break the layer of magic before them. Working on it one layer at a time, the team was making steady progress. Natsu and Gajeel paced around in impatience.

* * *

 **Elsewhere with Laxus and Freed**

" _The hall of thunder….to think you'd actually go that far, Laxus"_ thought Freed to himself darkly.

"What are you doing, Freed? With Evergreen gone, Bixlow was also put down by Gray. Now that the hostages are free and Mystogan is here as well, your presence is nigh mandatory" questioned Laxus, the anger in his voice apparent. "So, I order you to go out there and kill Cana and that phantom girl. I need neither for my guild"

"Kill?! We may be enemies now, but they are still members of the guild! Why do we-"

"DID YOU NOT HEAR MY ORDERS, FREED?!" he roared. Freed understood the gravity of the situation he'd found himself into, and steeled himself.

"Very well. Now that it's come to this, there's no going back. I shall accompany you till the end, even if it means taking the road to hell. I'll be aiming to kill from now. Don't get cold feet now" he said, leaving with killing intent flowing out of his being.

"Good…good. Show them your true powers, Freed the dark" remarked Laxus, satisfied.

* * *

 **Elsewhere**

Erza has no luck finding Laxus yet, and only managed to run into old abandoned building, a bakery, a dead end and a tailor's shop amongst other things. She eventually did find Gray and Bixlow lying unconscious however, and decided against her better judgement to take them to the guild for nursing. Lucy and happy were roaming about together, and didn't really want to run into any adversary just yet.

Cana and Juvia were on the lookout for potential enemies.

"That's just dirty….hiding himself and letting others fight" spat Cana.

"He isn't hiding. He's saving his strength so he can go all out with the master" replied a voice.

"That voice….Freed!" remarked Cana. Freed gave them a cold stare, and made a run for it.

"Tch, running away?! Come back you coward!" Cana gave chase, Juvia followed closely behind. They went over several streets and rooftops, until the two of them hit another invisible wall.

"What the….another enchantment?!" gasped the brunette beauty. The enchantment read "Leaving this area is forbidden until one is unable to continue"

"Freed you dirty bastard!" cursed the brunette beauty. "How scared must you be to resort to something like this against a couple of women!"

"I am merely intending to reduce the number of people I must kill. I'll take on the victor myself" he replied, his voice as cold as ice.

"What the fuck was that about?!" she cursed again, trashing the walls of the enchantment.

"I suppose there's no choice now" said Juvia, morphing into her aqueous form. "Can I take your word that you'll face the survivor yourself should the other fall?"

"I am not the kind to break rules"

"I see. Atleast you're a man of honor, no matter how misguided that may be" she replied. The aghast Cana expected to be hit with a torrent of Juvia's water magic, but it never came. Instead, the flowing form of the water mage ascended higher and higher, until it was painfully obvious what her intentions were.

"Juvia….you couldn't be…stop!" cried out the brunette.

"Impossible….." said Freed, surprised himself.

"You just need one person incapacitated right? Then that might as well be me! I refuse to harm my friends!" she declared and blasted the lacrima above her. The lightning attack was more than effective in rendering serious injuries, given her aqueous body. She fell down with a sick crash. Cana was shaking in anger, helplessness and rage. The enchantment wall gave away silently.

"Freed you bastard! I'll kill you!" roared the brunette, rushing at him.

* * *

 **Back at the guild**

The screen displaying the status of every member in the battle now displayed the unfortunate set of events that occurred with Juvia and Cana.

"No…." whimpered Levy.

"Don't lose focus! We're almost there!" said Tesamu.

"R..right"

"Dammit!" said Natsu, searing with rage.

"I got it!" said Tesamu out aloud, and with movements faster than the eye can see, scribbled all over the enchantment wall. The barrier broke apart as if like shattered glass.

"We're back in action. Let's move out and put an end to things" he said, and pretty much didn't wait for the other two to follow.

"Finally" said Natsu, charging up his fists.

"Time to settle the score" said Gejeel, smashing his fists. Levy watched as the trio proceeded and disappeared behind the confines of the town's horizon.

" _We're counting on you!_ "

* * *

 **Somewhere in the town center**

Mira managed to find her brother much to her relief, but was nonetheless distraught at his condition.

"It's fine, nee-chan. I can support myself" said Elfman.

"There's nothing else I've been able to do….atleast for this let me be of help" Their advance was halted abruptly by a grievously wounded Cana crashing into the bridge above them.

"You are tough indeed. I suppose that's to be expected of a guild veteran" remarked Freed, sword in hand.

"Cana…" stammered Elfman confused. Mira was also equally shocked.

"TAKE IT BACK! TAKE THAT BACK ABOUT JUVIA BEING A PHANTOM GIRL!" shouted Cana, on the verge of angry tears. She clenched at her neck, as if being deprived of air, chocked and fell unconscious.

"CANA! What happened?!"

"So, it's you Elfman. But you have already lost the battle against Ever. By the rules, a fallen piece is forbidden to enter the game once again" he stated calmly.

"What battle?! Isnt this enough?! Arent we comrades?!" questioned the white haired beauty desperately.

"We were once. But I shall carry out Laxus's orders above all others. And hence, for the crime of breaking the rules, you shall be punished" he said darkly, and swiftly inscribed runes on Elfman's defenseless body.

"Yami no Ecriture: Pain" he said, one of his eyes a deadly shade of black. The beast take over user screamed and writhed in intolerable pain.

"No…NO!" cried out Mira, begging him.

"Yami no Ecriture: Fear!" Elfman began quivering and whimpering.

"Yami no Ecriture: Suffering!"

"Yami no Ecriture: Pain! Yami no Ecriture: Pain! Yami no Ecriture: Pain! Yami no Ecriture: Pain!"

"NO….NOOOOOO…..STOP…PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU! HE'S HURT…PLEASE, PLEASE….!" She pleaded.

"You can fight, can you not? Didn't you recently learn how to use your arms? Devil arms? If you disagree with my methods, then you better take up arms!" he declared.

"WHY?! WHY MUST YOU KEEP DOING THIS?! DO YOU DERIEVE SADISTIC PLEASURE FROM THIS? ISNT IT ENOUGH! . !"

"So….you refuse to take up arms just because I am a guild member….? How weak. That weakness is your fatal and only weakness, Mirajane. But I am not so forgiving. Laxus's orders are absolute" he remarked. "Yami no Ecriture: **Death** "

Mira seized up. Her entire world went blank hearing that one statement. Death? _Erasure? Annihilation?_ The painful face of her younger sister briefly flashed before her, Lisanna's crying face still etched into her memory. That wasn't all. As the world around her become more and more blurry and black, she could hear voices. Voices of despair. Voices of hatred. Voices of fiery anger. Voices of mercilessness.

"… _ **..protect…fight….attack…**_. _ **destroy…crush them all…..no forgiveness…"**_ Freed Justine froze dead in his tracks, his sword barely inches away from Elfman's unconscious body. The air, the ground and even the very Etherno particles in the area quivered and shook as Mira's expression blanked out, her body flooding with malicious and dark energy. The nature of which was so vast, it seemed to blanket and envelope the very light in the vicinity.

* * *

 **Back in the guild's resting rooms**

Cadis Etrama di Raizel stared off in the direction of the energy, his expression serious and concerned.

"….Frankenstein…..?"

* * *

 **Magnolia**

Erza stopped running and sharply turned her head. She was sweating profusely.

"What the…is this really _you…._ Mira…..?" she gasped, her eyes wide. Elsewhere Tesamu had a very similar expression.

" _What in the blazes is that…..is it Teacher…..? But no….this malice isn't nearly as menacing as teacher's at his worst moment, but it nonetheless reminds me of teacher's dark spear…could it be…..Mira….? I should go…._ "

* * *

 **With Freed and Mirajane**

" **RRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!** " The battle cry vibrated throughout the vicinity, knocking the wind out of Freed. The presence was strong enough to arrest his movements. He couldn't stop his body from instinctively fleeing or shaking. The explosion from Mira's outburst send out gusting winds and torrents of pure magical power.

"This is…..Mirajane….!" Her body was now covered with dark gothic style clothing, scales along her arms and legs, a demonic tail, demonic claws and horns, her white hair flying away from her, fangs where her teeth were and dark, black lips, leathery demonic wings and ice blue eyes as dead and cold as a demon, not a shred of mercy in them, nor any trace of the gentle girl who she was a few minutes before. A vicious scar ran along her right eye from her forehead till her chin. 'Mira' stood emotionless for a moment, her breathing deep and slow. She slowly looked at her nemesis.

"… **..must…eliminate…."** she rasped, her gentle voice replaced by a demonic whisper. Freed was literally shaking in his pants. He flinched, and made it priority to put some distance between her and himself. His heart was beating rapidly.

"This is…Mirajane's Take over….Satan Soul…...!"

* * *

 **Before I end the chapter, I'd like to mention a couple of things. The omnislash Erza uses and the title of the chapter are without a doubt references to Final Fantasy 7, even the part where she twirls her sword. Thought I'd put it in the end as a disclaimer, since I don't own FF7, Square (now Square Enix I believe) does. Recently finished that game, and I couldn't resist putting a small reference here. And yes. Mira's takeover is different in my version of the story. You'll come to know soon enough. Thank you so much for reading my story, and I'll see you next time!**


	19. Chapter 19: - The demon reborn

**Response to reviews**

 **SleeplessForest27 :- Glad you like it! Here's another quick one!**

* * *

 **Chapter 19 : - The demon reborn**

"… **..must…eliminate…."** she rasped, her gentle voice replaced by a demonic whisper. Freed was literally shaking in his pants. He flinched, and made it priority to put some distance between her and himself. His heart was beating rapidly.

"This is…Mirajane's Take over….Satan Soul…...!" stammered the green haired warrior of the thunder tribe, quivering in fear. Thinking fast, he began frantically writing runes on himself. With a blink of an eye, her form was no longer within his sights, and he felt a swift breeze speed past him, and recoiled when he felt the hit from Mira's attack. He composed himself and finished inscribing the script on his body, which read 'wings' in the runic language. But even the flight granted to him through his newly manifested wings wasn't of much help. The raging demon dashed right in front of him, and kicked him with titanic force. Freed doubled over, and was sent spiraling down. Mira flew down with supersonic speeds, getting to the bottom before Freed could even hit the ground and kicked him again, sending him through multiple boulders. The green haired warrior coughed violently, but used all his effort into inscribing another enchantment.

His form changed drastically, one that matched the very monstrosity that he was dueling against.

"Only a demon can fight against one of its kin" he rasped. The two rushed towards each other, each with their fists drawn. The shockwave of their clash obliterated the multitude of debris surrounding them. Both fighters reeled backwards from the shock. Freed sent another punch, which Mira countered with her knee. Twisting herself, she delivered a kick with her other foot, slamming into Freed's hip. The latter withstood the hit, and tried going in for another punch to Mira's torso. Mira simply spun around to avoid the damage, grabbed Freed by his tail and swung him around, flung him into the ground. Not even stopping for a moment, Mira flew uninterrupted at the still descending freed, and engaged in a mid air battle, clawing, kicking and punching. _Something's strange,_ thought Freed. _No matter how powerful Satan Soul was, I've never seen her fight like this before. Her fighting style is so wild….so brutal and without mercy. As if she's not even conscious of her actions…..could it be because of her not using her powers for so long….if so, can I even last against her assault…?_ His thoughts were cut short as he crashed into the ground. Mira gave a low, threatening growl, sending shivers down his spine. She grabbed his face, and slammed him hard into the ground. Freed coughed blood vigorously. Her hand began glowing in an ominous shade of dark red. The magical energy Freed felt was suffocating. It was almost as good as Gildart's at his best. But that wasn't what scared him at that point. His body was numb from the magical energy his was hit with, but even scarier was her _expression._ Staring down at him were her cold, blue eyes filled with ecstasy. _She was toying with him. Enjoying it, as if like a beast who was held captive was suddenly given freedom._ Her face twisted into a contorted grin, the dark sphere in her hands growing larger by the second. _I..I'm going to die…!_

Freed felt the grip on his face disappear suddenly. He felt the light rustle when someone or something kicked Mira's arm away, causing her to release the stored magic into the forest nearby. The beam travelled for a good amount of time, before causing a colossal explosion of dark red energy, spewing black smoke and splinters of demolished trees and earth everywhere. The shockwave was powerful enough to send gusting winds in all directions, nearly tripping them over their feet. Tesamu watched in shock at the fallout a single attack from her had.

"Mira! That's enough!" he called out, shaking her a bit. But she only attacked him in response, which he dodged by a hair's breadth. "Mira!"

Within her mind, Mirajane Strauss could barely make out someone, yelling at her, holding her by her arms. Her vision was covered by a thick, dusky haze, and even her ears seemed as if they were muffled. More than that however, was the overflowing emotion of ecstasy that filled her entire mental fortitude. It felt refreshing. It felt free. SHE felt free. As if all the worries that troubled her simply dissolved in the haze permeating her mind. "M..ra." came the voice again. _How curious,_ she thought. She could see a bit more clearly now. The figure had shoulder length wavy long blond hair. Yellow piercing eyes. His expression one of concern and worry. Beside this figure lay another, this time with long forest green hair, his body conceded in defeat. His face was covered with blood, grime and bruises. Something rippled within her consciousness, and see saw multitude of images, the face of her sister pleading to her in an apologetic voice and asking her not to blame herself.

"MIRA!" came Tesamu's familiar voice, and her mind snapped back to reality. She could make out his concerned face, and also the state her surroundings were in. There was debris everywhere, and signs of explosions all around them in the form of craters. The nearby stream had been completed depleted of water, which was blown away by her initial release of her demonic powers. The forest nearby was in cinders, smoke still escaping from the inner sections of what was left of it. Many trees were either uprooted or reduced to splinters. But most importantly, what caught her attention was the state Freed was in. He had reverted back to his normal state, fear still etched in his face. His body had several lacerations, slashes and burn marks. There was a large wound on his gut, as well as his hip, both of them swollen, which indicated broken bones.

"Freed..-" she approached him with her arm outstretched, but the fallen warrior of the thunder tribe only backed away, eyes wide and filled with fear. The white haired beauty flinched.

"I….I did it again…" she said, her voice trembling.

"Mira…..you were provoked, it couldn-"

"No!" she refuted, backing away "I thought I had finally overcome this….If you hadn't stopped me, I would have surely…my own nakama…." she continued as she dropped to her knees, sobbing quietly. Tesamu watched, unsure of how to handle the situation.

" _It probably would be best to leave her to her own thoughts, but…."_ He then remembered the times that Frankenstein used to console him whenever he felt worthless about himself, or failed at something. He went up to her, and lightly patted her head.

"It's fine now, Mira. It's over" he said "Let's put an end to this contest that pits fellow comrades against each other, and go back". She sniffled a little.

"Bu…but I hurt my friends…." She protested.

"Between comrades, what's one blow or two, eh? The important thing is that you care for your friends from the bottom of your heart. If there is an obstacle that you cannot overcome, you can always rely on someone to help you in your time of peril. Isn't that what a guild is?" he said. She sobbed a little, and hugged him hard, catching the unsuspecting blond by surprise. He blushed, and scratched his head.

"I'm sorry" she said quietly. He hugged her back, and after what seemed like an eternity, let go. He never suspected that she had such a foreboding hidden persona. Although he knew she had some demonic power, he never expected that her personality would be affected as well.

"Let's go, Mira. Back to the guild" he said, and she nodded.

He went and supported Freed in one hand. He was about to go over to Elfman, but Freed murmured something.

"Why didn't you..finish me off?" he said, looking away.

"I don't get it" snapped Tesamu "You guys are supposed to be comrades right? Why then, do you go so far as to even murder own of your own? What drives you to this stage? I don't get it at all"

"The only one I follow, is Laxus. Everything else is meaningless" he replied.

"Is that really how you feel? Can you really feel alright with causing pain and distress to your own? Is that how you felt when Laxus asked you to kill them?" continued Tesamu, lifting up Elfman with his other arm.

"T…that's…."

"I don't think it's completely wrong to cling to one person…but you know, you don't have to alienate yourself because of that. You can any number of people close to you. It's when people realize that they are alone, that they start to become kind. You know that….don't you?" asked Mira, gently offering her hand.

"I….I never wanted to do this…" said Freed, stuttering.

"I know, I know….next time, let's attend the festival with everyone else, ok?" she said, smiling. At that moment, Tesamu saw that Mira seemed to shine brighter than anyone. A voice so gentle, and yet at the same time so empowering. A smile so refreshing and peaceful. The setting sun illuminating her outline only added to her gentle aura. He couldn't help but stare at her, mesmerized by the sight. Mira looked at him, and blushed when she looked at Tesamu staring, lost in thought. There was an awkward silence between the two, but not an uncomfortable one. It was then they realized how much each liked being in the other's company. Both of them realized that they were staring at each other just a little too long, turned red and looked away. Tesamu sighed, worried that he'd just made a fool of himself. _Way to go, you idiot,_ he told himself. _You just had to fall for her, didn't you?_ Mira noticed, and giggled. Tesamu couldn't help but chuckle. The tension between the two evaporated, and the two carried the unconscious members all the way till the guild, all the while enjoying each other in pleasant conversation.

* * *

 **With Gajeel and Natsu**

The two dragon slayers walked around looking for Laxus's whereabouts, their adrenaline rush running out.

"Yo salamander, why don' we split up? It'll be faster finding that lightning bastard" suggested Gajeel.

"Huh? Why all of a sudden? Not that I mind, I never intended to team up with you" snapped Natsu.

"Let's just say that we can agree on the last part" he smirked, and continued going his own way anyways. Natsu let out a 'hmph' and parted ways. Unbeknownst to him, a small paper cutout of a stick figure floated in front of him.

"Gajeel, how are things at you end?" spoke the paper figure.

"Perfectly fine, Master Ivan. They've no clue about anything" smirked the black-haired dragon slayer.

"Good, good! Keep deceiving them until I have all the information about Fairy Heart. I'll contact you once again when I have another task for you. Those fairies wont know what hit them when the time comes. Kishishishishi!" And with that, the voice was dead.

* * *

 **At Cardia Cathedral**

The lone figure of the lightning dragon slayer stood bearing a grin on his face. Standing before him was Mystogan, cloaked from head to toe as usual, with 3-4 unusually shaped staffs.

"Deactivate the hall of thunder, and you might still pass these off as mere festivities" he said.

"Hah?! Are you insane? This is a battle to determine the strongest. This doesn't stop until there is only one of us left. Now that you're here, things can finally get started" retorted Laxus, adamant.

"I have little interest in such things. But if I must, I'd propose Gildarts" he said, his tone unchanging.

"He ain't coming back anytime soon. Erza's showing a lot of promise, but she's still too weak to stand at the top. And forget about Mirajane, she's no longer the demon she once was, and has been reduced to a mere weakling. How pathetic" he spat.

"Erza? Weak? You really must be blind" he said.

"I'm giving you a compliment, Mystogan. What I'm saying is that you're different from those weaklings. Today, only one of us will stand" he replied. "Oh wait a minute, that's not your real name is it? Should I just call you Jellal then?" he sneered. A tinge of angry red appeared in Jellal's eyes, as he sent forth a blast of magic that destroyed a large portion of the cathedral, which Laxus had no trouble avoiding.

"Where did you hear that?!" demanded the mysterious mage, glaring daggers at the lightning mage.

"Who knows? Maybe I'll tell ya if ya beat me" he taunted, his grin becoming even wider.

"So be it. Be prepared to face a form of magic you've never seen before"

"Bring it! I'll teach you your place, you damn mob!"

"Hmph!" Mystogan jumped, and threw all of his staffs in a circle around Laxus. The area enclosed within the staff began glowing.

"Skyscraper!" he chanted. The ground around the entire cathedral began morphing and shifting, an enormous earthquake shook the entire area, and a blinding pillar of light destroyed everything inside it. Laxus was thrown many feet into the air.

"I..Impossible! The church!" exclaimed the helpless lightning mage. But that wasn't all. The sky above him turned pitch black, a rip appearing in it. The cscaled hand of a grotesque monster several meters in height emerged out of the rip, tearing it wider and wider. Laxus could only watch breathless as the creature's dead, black eyes approached closer and closer towards him. He screamed out in terror and disbelief, unable to accept the existence of such obscene magic. The scenario broke apart, revealing the Cathedral once again, and Laxus dashing out of the aftereffects of the magic. He was laughing madly.

"HAHAHAHA! What a load of crap! You think some illusion would be enough to deal with me Mystogan?!"

"Impressive enough. But you noticed a bit too late. You're already trapped within my technique" he answered, as 5 magical circles floated above where Laxus stood.

"5 layered Magic Circle, Sacred Song!" chanted the mysterious mage, and a beam of offensive magic blasted the area inside the technique, but the lightning mage simply transformed into lightning and made a hasty escape. At the same time, he sent a rising bolt of lightning from the ground below Mystogan's feet. He jumped to the nearest pillar to avoid the attack, and so did Laxus. Mystogan used the pillar as a boost and dashed towards Laxus, but Laxus used his blnding speed to scale the walls to throw off Mystogan's sight and attacked him from the back. The latter jumped back to avoid damage, but he was only successful in minimizing it.

"Tch, not half bad" praised Laxus. The doors to the cathedral flew open, Erza and Natsu finally reaching the battleground.

"Lacus!" they both called out, alerting Mystogan to their presences, Erza's in particular.

"Erza! Why are you…?"

"You're wide open!" smirked Laxus, and shot a bolt of lightning at his face, destroying his clothing covering his face. Titania and salamander both gasped, for _his_ face was the last thing they thought would be Mystogan's.

"…J…J..Jellal…." stuttered Erza, completely frozen in place. A rush of emotions flooded her mind. Natsu had a hostile look on his face.

"Erza….I didn't want you at the very least to see this face….." said Mystogan slowly.

"…You're still alive…." She replied, unsure whether she felt relieved or worried.

"I'm not the Jellal you're thinking about. I know him, but I'm not him" he said "I'm leaving the rest to you" With a flash of light, he was gone.

"ARGH! Why do things always have to be so damn confusing! Fine! I'll just deal with Laxus alone! Erza, leave this guy to me!" The red head had no response, her shocked expression unchanging.

"ERZA!" he called out again, trying to get her attention. The next second, another flash of light illuminated the hall after a dense bolt of lightning hit the red haired beauty with a direct hit. She screamed out in pain, and writhed from the electric jolt.

"Now THAT was just you asking for it, Erza" said Laxus in a critical manner.

"HEY! DON'T PLAY DIRTY, LAXUS!" roared the flame dragon slayer, flailing his fists.

"Oh? I didn't see you come in, Natsu" trying to taunt him. But this time, something very different happened. Natsu's mind went back to one of his training sessions with Frankenstein.

* * *

 **Flashback**

 _Natsu rolled about the ground for what was probably the 20_ _th_ _time. Frankenstein stood over him, looking somewhat disappointed. He sighed heavily, slinging his hands into his pocket._

" _I keep telling you Natsu, don't charge head first in battle, especially when you encounter an opponent stronger than you. They'd have no problem simply swatting you aside, like I did in your last 21 charges. The only way you'd have a chance against say Erza or someone stronger is make them underestimate you and then going in for a decisive blow when their guard is down. This is especially easy, since being at a lower level than them, they would automatically underestimate you. So it all comes down to when you can find that decisive opening"_

" _But that's not fighting! That's just a shortcut to ending a fight!" protested Natsu._

" _Oh? I thought you only cared about winning?"_

" _Yeah, but not like this! Tell me how I can beat them fair and square!"_

" _You're asking the wrong person then" said the crazy scientist, smirking. "Because there's nothing more satisfying than looking at the reaction of an enemy who gets sucker punched because they were too arrogant. I just love the feeling of sending someone crashing to the ground when they act all high and mighty" He started laughing quietly, which did send a small shiver down Natsu. "But if you really want to know" he continued "Then there's only one way. Grind and grind until you level up. RPG's are rather spot on regarding such things. Right now, your level is simply too low to face a boss. You'll just have to grind till then"_

" _You lost me there Frankenstein" replied Natsu, sweatdropping._

" _Ah apologies. I meant that the only way for you to get stronger, is only by battling; again and again till you learn how to use your abilities to the best of effect; battle monsters, get hurt, heal, rinse and repeat till your physical strength increases. Simply put, increase your stats; Offence, defense, speed, endurance, magic power"_

" _Easier said than done" replied Natsu disheartened._

" _That's the point isn't it? There doesn't exist any convenient powerups that magically allow you to become stronger, even if this IS a place with magic. Basic rules and logic apply no matter where you go. Although it's fine to have strong belief in your friends, that by itself is pointless when it comes to battle. Sure, believing in something might help you hang on in a life threatening situation by enforcing your will to live, but you wont acquire true strength."_

" _Tch….alright. If that helps me defeat Erza, I wont crib bout it"_

" _That's already one step in the right direction" said the blond scientist, smiling._

* * *

 **Flashback end**

"Things wont end the same, Laxus!" challenged Natsu confidently. Laxus didn't even bother with a reply. Natsu charged forward, firing up his fists. _Heh, another senseless charge,_ thought the lightning mage, preparing to fling him off. But the pink haired slayer never made it till Laxus's arms' reach, but instead pounded the ground. Laxus watched confused for a second. The ground near his feat became hot and a flaring pillar of magical fire shot straight through his face. The damage was much more than he thought too. He reeled back from the searing attack, gasping. He had minor burns on his face. Erza was aghast that Natsu of all people fought the way he did.

 _Natsu..! Since when did he…?!_

"You punk, don't get too cocky!" Laxus charged his fists with electricity, lunged at him and pounded away at incredible speeds. Natsu received a good deal of hits, but not so much damage from them. He cloaked himself in flames and confined all his overflowing magic within himself, raising his temperature above human limits. The lightning mage felt the burns on his knuckles as he connected further punches, and jumped back reflexively.

"Ha…ha….what the hell is this…..how the fuck did trash like you become such a pain to deal with?!" cursed Laxus. "Damn, that's it! The kiddy treatment is over!" He raised his fists, sending multiple lightning bolts striking from various angles. Natsu dodged some of them, but also hit a few times. The intensity of the bolts was far stronger and he could feel his whole body seize up from their power. He crouched down to his knees, trying to shake off the pain.

"HAHAHAHAHA! WHERE DID ALL THAT BRAVODO GO NOW, NATSU?!"

Meanwhile, Erza felt embarrassed that she allowed herself to be in such a sorry state.

 _Natsu….he's grown since the past few days….he's become so much stronger, as far as being able to go head to head with Laxus. He's much more composed now. Yet I got shaken up by something like that. I'll put Jellal aside for now. Right now, Laxus takes priority._

She picked herself up from the dirt, surrounded herself with the familiar sensation of her exquip magic and changed to her Lightning Emperor Armor, something she bought to counter Laxus in battle and something she hoped she never needed to use. She dashed forward, and slashed at Laxus, which he sidestepped to avoid. Natsu too retreated, giving questioning looks at Erza.

"Hey, what gives? I said I'd beat him right?"

"I don't doubt you Natsu. But there's something about the he Lacrima floating above Magnolia" said Erza.

"I see you noticed the hall of thunder…..not that they're hard to miss in the first place" he retorted.

"You fiend! You mean to drag innocent people into this mess?! How low have you sunk?!" She unleashed a flurry of attacks in blind anger, naturally missing her target.

"It really bothers me to use them, but oh well. 2 minutes to go" he said.

"What?! Damn, no choice then! We'll have to leave this swine aside for the moment and destroy those things first!"

"That's impossible. There's hundreds of them and destroying any would cause recoil from the lacrima" objected the pink haired slayer.

"Living link magic?!"

"That's right. No one can stop this now" said Laxus with glee.

"You bastard…." She muttered with venom in her words. Laxus simply waved his hands and sent a bolt at her, but the effect wasn't as much as he thought it would be. The armor was effective enough in halving electric magic damage.

"Heh. Let's see how long that armor lasts"

"Laxus, I'm your only opponent here!" said Natsu. Erza stood still for a moment, looking at Natsu.

"Natsu, I can leave this to you right?"

"Huh?!" Usually he'd be brushed aside for interfering, but he was genuinely surprised that Erza of all people was leaving things to him. A small gush of gratitude and happiness flowed within him. "Just you watch, when you're back, I'd have kicked his ass. But where ARE you going anyways?"

"What do you think? To take care of those lacrima of course."

"What?! BY yourself?! You'll die!"

"He's right. Even a top class mage like yourself can probably take around 10 of them before biting the dust. You really don't value your life, do you?!" he laughed maniacally.

"Maybe, but I'd have given a chance for the people to live on" she said unperturbed "Make sure you beat him Natsu"

"I will trust you, as you did in me. You will come back alive, just as how I'll beat Laxus, no matter what" was his only reply. She couldn't hold back the smile that sentence brought her.

"I promise" And with that, the red haired warrior left to deal with things at her end.

"Dammit, each one of you is getting on my nerves!" snarled the lightning mage, making a move. A blast of fiery breath hit him full force, scorching him good.

"You're not getting anywhere, Laxus" he replied, flames flaring around him wildly.

"I don't need to run to deal with a runt like you, cheeky brat!"

* * *

 **That's it folks! Another fast (I hope it was fast) chapter to continue things. So I just want to mention 1-2 things. I'll be taking a short break before posting the next chapter (perhaps around 2 weeks). I have a shit ton of work and some other stuff that I need to focus on. I think next chapter will conclude this whole arc, and then we can finally start off with the exciting stuff. Also, I'm not sure if it's noticeable, but I'm constantly trying to refine my writing and implementing improvements, so I hope that change is actually helping the readability and making this more enjoyable. Do let me know if you did feel that was the case. Thanks a lot for all your support!**


	20. Chapter 20: - Slayer of the skies

**First off, apologies for the super long break! Had a LOT of stuff like exams and assignments as such. I can't guarantee that I can bring out updates weekly, but I shall try my best.**

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 **Response to reviews: -**

 **SleeplessForest27: - Thanks! Sorry for the wait!**

 **9721yellow: - *joins in on the tap dance* thanks for reading!**

 **Takemikazuchi: - Well, I'm glad that you asked the question. I did research a lot on the power scaling of different members, their greatest feats and so on. Raizel in particular has shown to be MUCH more powerful than he was before. I mostly used VSbattles for reference. When I started this story, Raizel was Island Level, and Acnologia was Continent level, which means Acno was a tad bit stronger than Rai. Since changing his powers drastically would introduce an inconsistency, I decided to keep them as is and empower Raizel to his current level in the webtoon slowly. One other thing I would like to point, is that 'Magic' and the abilities of the noblesse worlds do not interact with each other, due to their different nature. There must be a medium in between for the two to affect each other. That is why limitations on Raizel's power exist, and also because I don't want him to be too OP, because that would make things extremely redundant later on. (Rai would just go on saving everyone all the time). As for the Edolas Arc, I don't believe Rai or any of the noblesse characters would have counterparts, simply because Edolas is a mirror world of Earthland, to which Noblesse characters don't belong to. This is how I have planned it, but we shall see. Still, thank you so much for your review, I'm really glad someone took the time to look into things more deeply.**

 **N2: - Thanks a lot!**

* * *

 **Chapter 20: - Slayer of the skies**

"Alright" said Erza to herself, taking a deep breath. "From here, I can make out roughly 300 lachrima crystals…..my inventory permits me to hold about 200 swords at once….damn! In the time we have, how can I destroy them all….?"

" _..Ever….Everyone…! Can you hear me?_ " echoed a voice throughout the minds of all the mages present in the entire town. Erza shifted her head towards the direction the voice.

"Warren?" she called out. Likewise, Tesamu's, Mira's, Cana's and a few other's were the only responses that echoed throughout the town.

" _I could hear about a dozen voices…..is that really all we have..?"_ he asked uncertainly. " _No matter, this is of grave matter! From what I can make out, we have maybe about 2 minutes before those floating orbs of destruction set off! With just a dozen of us, we can at best take out twice as many of them….damn!"_

" _Worry not! I am more that capable of taking down atleast 200 of them!"_ declared the red haired warrior.

" _Unnecessary. Didn't I say this before? If it ever came down to that, I'll be more than happy to lend a helping hand here. I can take them out. Plus, thanks to my enhancements, I can heal my injuries, unlike you guys. You should just leave it to me"_ insisted Tesamu. Mira looked at him with worry.

" _..B..but…"_ began Erza.

"… _Guys hurry! We just have a minute left!"_ urged Levy.

"… _Damn, enough of this!"_ said Erza, and quickly summoned 60 swords, ex-quipped her Lightning Emperor Armor and flung all her swords towards the sky. About half a dozen of them missed their mark, and the rest went straight through the lachrima, shattering them. She had a half satisfied smile, disappointed that she missed some of them and satisfied for the rest. Her partial victory was short lived. Her body seized up, and powerful torrents of stored lightning magic were discharged throughout her entire body. She felt as if every muscle in the fiber of her being were being stretched all at once, freezing or locking them in place. She fell on all her fours, clutching herself and twitching. If not for her instinctively raising her magic defense, this would've never ended with just falling unconscious.

" _ERZA!"_ roared Tesamu through the mental connection.

" _Tch…..didnt…think it would be this bad….and only from 52 of them…curses…..and to think I thought I could handle 200 of these things…how pathetic…!"_ And with that, she let the slowly creeping blackness take over her into unconsciousness.

" _I can't let her be the only one to take them on"_ stated Cana desperately. She fished out her trusty pack of magical cards, and flung 3 of them, glowing in magenta, blue and yellow at the crystals. The cards went clean through, causing them to explode a second later. The same fate befell her that befell Erza, albeit the effects were only a fraction as strong. This was enough however to knock her out, although one or two more of the crystals would've meant certain death. Mira wouldn't have it either, and she lowered Elfman to the ground momentarily, and sent about 60 dark beams of black purple-black energy at the sky. All of them hit their mark, and Mira immediately raised her magical defense to its absolute limit. When the impact came, she screamed out in pain and collapsed. Tesamu rushed to her, and breathed a sigh of relief when he found that she had just be knocked out. He scowled heavily, set down Freed who had been silent for quite a while, not to mention shocked. IN the distance, Levy managed to snag 2 by herself, Lucy about 10, a number she couldn't have managed without Loki and Belmont.

Tesamu rushed towards the buildings, scaled up the tallest one he could find nearby, and from the roof of that building, using it as a boost, jumped all the way till the lachrima in the sky were level with him. His golden yellow eyes glowed as he charged his magic to its limit. Firing up his golden flames in his fists, he spun in mid air, and unleashed a torrent of brilliant golden flames. The flames spread out, and destroyed the remaining crystals. With a job well done, he touched down to the ground gracefully, and released his werewolf powers. Since he wasn't a complete werewolf and only a modified copy, all he could manage was his arms and torso. Still, the regenerative powers and abilities of a werewolf should prove enough, he thought to himself.

Nothing could've prepared him for the shock that he felt. Every muscle, every nerve seemed to go haywire, burn marks appearing throughout his body. His entire body went completely limb, and he lost all sensation. Muscles pulled in all directions and his body twitched uncontrollably. His powers began healing his body almost instantly, but that pain he felt in that instant nearly drove him mad. Although the pain was slowly fading, he could still _feel_ the intense pain he'd felt the instant he got hit, as if the very memory of it was enough to keep it sustained in his body. He rolled over, trying to ease that feeling. It took him a couple of minutes to be able to stand, and yet another to fully heal. He breathed in and out in an effort to compose himself.

"… _that was worse than I thought…..still, it's better that I took it on..don't think the others would've been able to handle it"_ he thought to himself, and returned to the place where he'd left Freed, Cana and Mira.

 **With Natsu and Laxus**

The duel between the two slayers came to a small stop, as the screen besides them blinked to life again, displaying 'Hall of thunder, out of order'. Expressions of shock and disbelief adorned Laxus's face, whereas those of relief and gratitude filled Natsu's face. It even displayed the number of lachrima each person had destroyed.

'Erza 52, Mira 60, Levy 2, Lucy 10, Loki 10, Cana 3, Bisca 1, Tesamu 162'

" _Holy shit…..that Tesamu guy got 162 of them?! Even Mira could only get about 1/3_ _rd_ _of that number…."_ Thought Natsu with a sense of respect and awe.

"Now do you see Laxus? Do you really think that the guild needs changing even now, seeing what our companions are capable of? How's a guy who doesn't even try to be part of the group become it's leader?" he questioned. The answer didn't come immediately. Natsu could sense some foreboding.

" **THROUGH FORCE!** " roared the lightning mage, his anger affecting his magic and sending multiple bolts of lightning throughout the building.

"Give it up, Laxus! The guild will never belong to you!" cried Natsu, charging up a punch.

"Yes….yes….I should've just done this from the very beginning…..should've just relied on this power from the beginning…." He mumbled, almost to himself.

"You're acting like a common bully, who tries to submit those below them through sheer force. A person like that, who can't understand the feelings of both the weak and strong can never become a master. So I'll just have to crush that power you keep talking about, and show you your place, Laxus!" Natsu zig zagged his way towards Laxus, trying to evade the lightning sparks flying all over the room. Charging his fists with localized and concentrated fire magic, he slammed it right into Laxus's face. Funny that he didn't try to avoid it, given how much faster he was than Natsu. But soon the pink haired slayer learnt the reason, as Laxus had a huge, satisfied smile on his face. The attack barely did anything to him at all.

"You're one of the only ones…" he said slowly. An enormous bolt of lightning hit Natsu in retaliation to his previous attack. "To push me this far!" Natsu crashed into a nearby pillar. Laxus plummeted the ground, and creeping bolts of lightning magic struck Natsu from the pillar. Not stopping there, Laxus sped along forward using his blinding speed, and delivered a knee-kick to Natsu's face. He was certain he'd atleast fractured the pink haired slayer's jaw with that hit. Natsu doubled over, coughing violently. _Perhaps not,_ thought Laxus, talking about his hit to Natsu's face.

"Alright, time to end this…..I do have a guild to restructure after all..!" he smirked, waving his hands and creating a wave of intense lightning magic. The wave left a trail of destruction in its wake as it travelled outward. With one final effort, Laxus raised his hands into the air, sending his most dense and dangerous move yet.

" **Raging Bolt!** " he roared, causing a titanic bolt of lightning to come crashing down on Natsu. Except that it didn't. Before making contact, the bolt swerved, as if being pulled towards something. It made contact with a huge iron pillar that stood in the room and disappeared into harmlessness.

"To think you'd really try to kill him, one of your own" said Gajeel the iron dragon slayer in a cautious tone.

"Oh don't try to act like Mr. Goody two shoes, trash. I've seen how you treat those that belonged to that good for nothing place you called a guild" retorted Laxus, his smile unwavering. "Heard you left 'em nothing short of being dead"

"..maybe so, but I never went so far as to kill a person. After all, nobody _died_ , now did they? But screw that, I'm only here to settle the score" smirked the iron dragon slayer. "So, just this once, I'll team up with ya" he said to Natsu, thoroughly surprising him.

"The heck?!" exclaimed the pink haired slayer.

"This is a one time thing only" he replied. "So don' be gettin' too surprised"

"I thought the sky wasn't big enough for two dragons?"

"Maybe so, but with all this lightnin', the sky aint fit for flying" he smirked back.

"If you're done rambling.." said Laxus, alerting the two by sending a bolt of lightning in their direction. "I'll start by picking you two apart!"

The two slayers looked at each other, and with a nod of understanding between them, rushed at the lightning mage. The iron slayer avoided an incoming bolt by a hair's breadth, and retaliated by sending multiple iron spikes from the ground. Laxus dodged with almost no effort, but the attack proved useful enough for the fire dragon slayer to attack with a wave of dragon slayer magic. The flames passed through Laxus harmlessly. Laughing madly, Laxus travelled along the length of the wall to strike the two multiple times using his blinding speed. Gajeel and Natsu reeled from the shock and crashed into the two opposite corners of the room.

"What?! That's it?!" taunted the lightning mage, still crackling with lightning.

"You ain't seen shit yet!" remarked Gajeel, picking himself from the dirt. He waved his arms, materializing small iron pillars from the ground all over the floor. Laxus noticed that the sparks from his magic travelled into these pillars instead of outward.

" _A lightning rod….damn that bastard!"_ he cursed. Taking the chance, the iron slayer rushed forward and slammed him with a multitude of heavy weapons that he materialized in his arm. Laxus could evade most of them, but a few did end up causing decent damage to him. Natsu, who'd recovered by now, plummeted him by rushing at him like a flaming corkscrew. Laxus was pushed back hard, but managed to keep his feet on the ground. Gajeel didn't waste a second. Vaulting over him, he sent a spinning kick aimed at his head, which surprisingly landed. The damage dealt was evident, since this time, Laxus _did_ fly off the ground, crashing into the wall instead. Gajeel and Natsu were panting heavily, aware that this wasn't just done yet.

Laxus pushed rubble out of his way, snarling. He looked like a starved beast. Gajeel and Natsu suppressed a shiver.

"Pieces of trash…..I was going too soft till now….but I think I've just about had it" he muttered dangerously. The canines in is mouth grew ever slightly longer, and his magic aura felt so much more familiar to the two.

"…No way…..don't tell me that…"stammered the pink haired slayer.

"..Lightning Dragon's…" he said slowly, as he began charging an insane amount of dragon slayer magic.

"Damn bastard is a dragon slayer as well?!" exclaimed Gajeel.

"..ROAR!" A titanic blast flew towards them. By pure instinct, the two countered with their own breath attacks, barely having any time to charge it or to utter the names, which they usually do. The blasts collided in the middle, but it was clear as day which one would prevail. The lightning beam, although much weaker now, engulfed the two, causing a miniature explosion when it did.

"Urgh…." Groaned the iron slayer, barely having any strength to move. The fire dragon slayer was in no better condition.

"What….? Still alive..?" questioned Laxus, the malice in his voice self-evident.

"Yo flame brain…..can ya move…?" asked Gajeel uncertainly, tilting his head up a bit to look at him.

"…hehe…..never thought…he'd be so strong….." muttered Natsu.

"I know…..I'll just use _that_..." he said ominously. "I'll rebuild everything as master. A guild strong enough to make everyone cower in fear" A blinding, white light enveloped the room. A suffocating magic emanated from Laxus's hands, where an orb had formed.

"That's not even funny anymore….." said Natsu slowly, with what little strength he could gather.

"That thing wiped out Master Jose himself…looks like we might as well throw in the towel here" said Gajeel in a very similar tone.

"VANISH!" shouted Laxus, as the intensity of the attack grew to its strongest. The fire dragon slayer and the iron dragon slayer closed their eyes, awaiting the inevitable. Except, it never came. Time seemed to flow so slowly that mere seconds began to feel like minutes, and the adrenaline pumping through their veins from the eminent fear of death making it ever more so slower. Natsu and Gajeel watched wide eyed, as the light suddenly vanished instead, as if the caster lacked the power to maintain the tension required to sustain the Fairy Law attack. More surprised that the two lying on the ground was Laxus himself who was left completely motionless and also much weaker than before. Somehow, all of his magic energy had been depleted. The lightning that crackled throughout his body disappearing was proof of that.

"Wh..what the heck happened?!" asked Natsu, almost to himself.

"He ran out of magic" came the answer from the almost obliterated entrance. Tesamu came walking in slowly.

"..You…!" breathed Laxus, his body still numb from the sudden magic deficiency.

"Unlike Natsu-san or Gajeel here, Laxus's dragon slayer magic comes from the lightning dragon lachrima in his body. Lachrima can only store so much energy before they run out. Dragon slayer magic is especially taxing on them. And because they are fused to your body, your body takes a hit as well when they run out. Not to mention that you've been taking powerful anti-dragon magic from 2 slayers. You're lucky you're still alive" he said in a serious tone.

"SHUT UP!"

"I don't believe it…." said Natsu, his eyes half open in amazement.

"Lachrima that allow you to use dragon slayer magic…." Said Gajeel in the same tone of amazement.

"Laxus….you can still reverse everything you've done….put an end to this already"

"I SAID SHUT UP! WHAT DO YOU KNOW, OUTSIDER!" Natsu frowned in rage at that statement, but Tesamu hardly flinched.

"So, you believe that only the strong should persevere? The weak should be rooted out? How narrow minded, and how ironic coming from you. Initially, you were quite weak yourself, before getting lachrima implemented into your body. If your grandfather had thought that way, would you still be able to make the statements you're making now?" he asked simply. There was no reply from Laxus; he just continued to glare at Tesamu.

"What I said earlier was not a figure of speech. You really were lucky this time. I heard about Fairy Law from Makarov. Although it sounds very angelic, it's probably one of the most darkest spells in existence, because it spares not even its caster of misfortune as price for casting it. Not only does it completely KILL the ones that the caster recognizes as their enemy, but it also burns the lifespan of its caster. Greater the spell radius, the faster YOU die. If you'd used that in your condition, you'd most definitely be in the afterlife right about now" he explained. Natsu gasped wide eyed at this new information, and this time, Laxus was really shaken up as well. He looked at his hands, his thoughts blank.

"Plus, it takes years to master this spell. If used incorrectly, it can leave the user with a fate worse than death. I don't need to tell how true that would be now would I?" Silence yet again. "But Makarov still taught you that even before you had lachrima implanted in your body, because to him, you were the strongest mage. He believed in you so much, he taught you how to use one of the most dangerous magics in existence. Even when you behaved like a prick, it hurt him more than the pain you caused the others. Even so, he never said a word against you harshly. Even after all this, he still cannot bring himself to go after you, even though the barrier restraining him is gone. Do you want me to continue?" asked Tesamu. Laxus hung his head in defeat.

"Please. Go back to the guild. You can still fix things" requested Tesamu. "Talk to Makarov…..that's all I have to say…." And with that, he silently walked out, helping up Natsu and Gejeel. He did want to wait for Laxus to tag along, but seeing as how the Lightning slayer was lost in thought, Tesamu decided it would be best if Laxus had some time alone.

The chaos from the battle of Fairy Tail eventually settled down, and daily activities of the guild members resumed. After a not so pleasant confrontation with his grandfather, he agreed to leave the guild as an act of making up for his behavior till date and also to embark on a journey to discover his own truth. Makarov remained disheartened by that decision for a few days, but eventually got over it. Gajeel, who was working as a double spy for Makarov and the guild master of Raven Tail run by Makarov's son Ivan, continued to serve in missions to both parties, but keeping his loyalties to Makarov.

Freed underwent a massive makeover by shaving his head clean as an act to make up for his deeds. Evergreen and Bixlow too slowly integrated with everyone as time healed all their ill will towards each other. Natsu threw a tantrum for a couple of days, unhappy that Laxus was leaving and also because Gajeel was recognized as a proper member of FT given his previous contribution in dealing with Laxus. Tesamu, who was also much closer to the members than when he came here, slowly felt that this was a place that he could belong to.

Frankenstein was still away on his investigation, Raskreia returned to FT a day later, only mildly surprised to see the guild in such commotion (she assumed it was due to them being such a noisy bunch, so she really didn't think much of it). Since Frankenstein was away, Raizel and Raskreia stayed together at the place Frankenstein had found before, this gave opportunity for gossip amongst the guild members, but the noble duo were indifferent to it, possibly due to Raizel and Raskreia's social ignorance. Eventually Tesamu needed to find a place to stay as well, so the master suggested he try the men's dorm rooms, to which he happily agreed.

* * *

 **A few days later**

Erza, who happened to have some free time that day, was engaged in an interesting conversation with her childhood rival, Mira, both of whom were treating themselves to a nice, cold glass of beer.

"So, how many of those Lachrima did you manage to take out that day?" asked Erza.

"About 60 I believe. Why do you ask?"

"Well, I got around that same number myself, but that was our limit noe? And we're one of the strongest mages here. Tesamu managed to get almost 3 times that number. Makes me wonder how much more stronger he is" said Erza in a tone of complete admiration.

"You seem too interested in him after that incident" replied Mira, her tone a tiny bit dim.

"Hmm? Is that jealousy I sense?" teased the red haired beauty, a naughty giggle escaping her.

"Yeah right, you wish. I'd say it's the complete opposite. Whenever something about him comes up, and I'm around, I see you disappear behind the corner….kinda like how master's funds do whenever Natsu wrecks something unnecessarily" she said solemnly.

"Aaaand demon Mira strikes again" replied Erza, deadpanned at her savage roast.

"Anyways, there IS one other thing I wanted to ask you today" she continued, serious. "Remember that S rank quest? The one about white mist town? Both of us have gotten much stronger now. Do you think we should….?"

"Hmm…"

"It is certainly strange….they seem to have a real crisis going on, but say that there is no 'deadline' for the quest…..almost as if they don't expect anyone to actually succeed in helping them out with whatever they're going through. And to add to that, they even specifically request that no other mages apart from S class ones should take part….as if they're tired of seeing people die who were too weak…."

"So…this is perfect right? We can help them out and this is also a great way for us to become stronger. Two birds with one stone" replied Erza.

"Yeah sure….and I too feel that we should help these people out….but the warning does send a shiver down my spine…." Said Mira reluctantly.

"Well, if you're worried so much, why don't we ask master to let Tesamu go with us? At this point, he's atleast as strong as we are, so he definitely is S class in terms of ability. And he's _such_ good company" she cooed. Mira flared up, blushing. Indeed, the prospect of Tesamu joining them on their journey seemed captivating, although she did wish she could go with the blond lad alone but also guessed that master would never agree to it anyways. Something better than nothing, she said to herself.

"Alright! Let's do it!" chimed Mira, excited. The red haired beauty smiled to herself in triumph.

"Glad to hear it" she replied, and the two grabbed the dusty request sheet from the board and proceeded to meet Makarov.

* * *

 **So this concludes the Battle of Fairy Tail arc, and also started off my original arc. I should mention that the arc itself might not be the biggest, it's the aftermath that has the most impact. Once again, thank you so much for supporting my works, hope you enjoyed it. I'm super busy with work most times, but I shall definitely try my best to bring out new chapters. Thanks again!**


	21. Chapter 21: - Riding the Magnolia Xpress

**Thank you for waiting, so finally the new arc starts off! Before I start though, I just want to clarify something about the power scaling. So in the previous arc, Tesamu destroyed 3 times as many lacrima as Erza or Mira. But this didn't mean that Erza/Mira are 3 times weaker than Tesamu. Erza and Mira were both exhausted after their battles, hence the drop in their abilities. Do have a look at the end of the chapter, I'll be including the current power levels of some of the characters. References from VS Battle, which I find to be a reliable source.**

* * *

 **Response to reviews: -**

 **Neobenm : - Ah I messed up somewhere? Sorry, must've not paid attention properly! It would help me a lot if you pointed out where I left a plothole.**

 **Greer123: - I think I may include more 'Easter Eggs' in future chapters, and I was never sure how well they would work out. Since you like them, I guess they worked well! Thanks!**

 **9721yellow: - Thanks, I'm happy there's someone looking forward to it! Sorry for taking this long for this chapter!**

 **Krysten Lee Wheeler : - I will definitely have a bonus chapter, sort of like a small one shot spinoff chapter with the RK members. I'm really glad you liked the story!**

 **AniMeOtaKuKiNg: - There are some pairings, like maybe 2-3, but they are not the main focus of the story. Not even close.**

* * *

 **Chapter 21: - Riding the Magnolia Express**

 **Guild halls of FT**

The two beauties of FT were having a discussion with their master regarding the S class quest.

"What do you mean by 'Tesamu isn't here' master?!" asked Mira, trying to sound casual and hide her disappointment. Erza was the same, but it was her facial expressions that she was trying to hide.

"Like I said, he's off on some work. It was quite sudden too. All of a sudden, he sprang up like he remembered something important and dashed away. Didn't even leave a hint" explained Makarov.

"I see….." said Erza, her voice slightly down.

"Hrmm…I suppose I can understand your disappointment. Having him as a member of your team would've been much more assuring, but I believe in the two of you. Both of you are much more powerful than before, thanks to Frankenstein and all of your battle experiences till now" he assured. Mira and Erza looked at each other. Clearly Makarov missed the point about why they felt disappointed with Tesamu's absence, but they planned to keep it that way.

"Still, I do feel a certain unease with the whole situation. Perhaps since Tesamu is missing, we can have Raizel or Raskreia-"

"NO!" came the unified objection from the two beauties, which surprised the old master.

"Master, this is something we want to do ourselves….."

"I agree" added Mira. "Those two have helped us plenty, and it's not fair to rely on them again and again. Especially considering that Raizel uses his lifeforce everytime he uses his powers…..no. I don't want to ask his or Raskreia's help. They deserve some peaceful time. And besides, I…want to become stronger and be able to completely control my powers, and there's no better chance than this. Please, allow us to go alone" she asked.

"The two of us are one of the strongest mages in our guild, and together, we're even more so. I believe we can help the people of White Mist Town . Our guild has never turned away from someone who requests our help, and we shan't do so now" declared the red haired beauty.

"That's true. Clearly the message alone tells us one thing, that they don't expect any help from outside, almost like they've given up. Like you said, Fairy Tail has never turned the blind eye to ones that ask our help, and we won't do so now! Erza! Mira! A parent's job is to believe in his children, and that's what I'll do now. Go and show them the generosity of Fairy Tail and make me and the entire guild proud!" he declared, his voice full of hope and pride for his brats.

"Yes master!" came the unified voices.

 **Sometime later, Mirajane's house**

The usually quite home of the Strauss siblings was now bustling with activity. Mira was practically sprinting from one end of her house to the other since the meeting with Makarov, taking out stuff for the trip and re-organizing her other things. Her meticulous nature helped to speed things up. Elfman was concerned, for he had never seen his sister pace around with so much energy before. She was way too excited for this mission, he thought. The contents of the mission request sent a shiver down his spine, and he knew that it had only been a few days since she had regained powers somewhat close to her original self. The other pressing issue was that the old Mira was confident and dominating, but the Mira in front of him now was meek and submissive.

Although this seemed to be trivial, one's mental fortitude often determined how well the person's powers worked in battle. Elfman preferred the old Mira's personality for battle than the latter. He wished for either of Raskreia or Raizel to accompany them.

"That's it! I can ask master to allow them to go with nee-san!" said Elfman to himself. That did seem to put him in good spirits. He knew the two were incredibly powerful, and nothing would befall his sister with them watching over her or Erza for that matter.

He immediately bolted out of the house, and without stopping anywhere almost nearly crashed into master's room, startling the onlooking guild members.

"MASTER! Please hear me out!" he breathed, panting. Makarov was still trying to process his sudden entry.

"Hold on, my boy….calm down for a minute…." He said slowly, and waited a moment to give Elfman a little time to stop gasping. "Alright now, what were you telling me again?" he asked.

"Master! Please ask Raizel or Raskreia to accompany nee-san for her quest! I have a really bad feeling about this!" he pleaded, almost on his knees.

"I understand, Elfman…I didn't like the way the request sounded either. But both Mira and Erza are quite powerful and the two of them together possibly the strongest team of FT. Especially with Mira having recently awakened her old powers. The only ones that need to worry are whoever's been terrorizing that town" he said in an assuring manner.

"b..but…what's wrong with sending them then? What's wrong with allowing them to be accompanied by Raskreia or Raizel?" he pressed on.

"I wouldn't have minded, but both Erza and Mira were quite adamant that they wanted no external help. I tried my best to convince them otherwise, but they were quite stubborn on doing this by themselves….what can I say? It's hard for a parent to refuse his children when they ask for something the way they did. Usually they go along with whatever I say, so atleast for this time, I didn't want to put any restrictions on them" he said. And with that, his anxiety from before was back.

"How about this? I'll ask Raizel and Raskreia to join them if something happens to them….that way, I can grant them their request as well as yours. I'll prepare for them to send in an emergency signal in case things go south. Then, we can have Raizel take over and keep those 2 safe from danger….how does that sound?" proposed Makarov.

"Thanks a lot, master!" said Elfman in a somewhat satisfied manner, and headed back home.

 **Near the ruins of the Tower of Heaven**

Frankenstein sighed with a heavy brow on his forehead. The events that followed since he left looking for clues hadn't quite turned in his way and getting till here took him more time than he would've liked, and needless to say, he REALLY needed something to relieve his stress. He swore he'd heard Dark Spear smirk at him in satisfaction.

" _Nothing here too…no traces of magic, no trace of any sort of aura either. The only thing I get here is the massive energy from Etherion and Master's own energy. I shouldn't have expected the energy trails from the perpetrators to have remained_ " he told himself.

"BLAST!" he shouted, punching hard at a nearby half standing pillar, smashing it to dust.

" _Such a waste of time….I won't find anything here….guess it's back to magnolia then…at this point, I would find more information at Lukedonia….wait a minute…!"_ Shock adorned his face, as he recollected the words that his student told him back when they were reunited.

" _At one point, one of the noble Elders present took my locket and disappeared. Afterwards I heard about how another elder got bested by teacher in a fight, and how the plan for using the locket failed…._ " Frankenstein's shock only grew more.

" _No way…..how did I not think about this immediately?! No…..I always knew they were up to no good, but now the connection is clear. Upon Lord's request, I turned away from their activities. Ragus, Ignes, Roctis, Edian, Gradius, Zarga and Urokai….I see…..looks like I was right in thinking about returning to Lukedonia….I just wish I'm not too late and they haven't already moved somewhere else to one of their secret bases from Lukedonia….and if I remember right, Tesamu also mentioned about werewolf experimentation, which would mean that the werewolves are in this as well….."_

Leaving the area, he boarded the custom boat he'd built himself. It looked like a regular boat made with sheet metal, except that this one ran off the magical energy present in the atmosphere of Earthland, meaning that it required no propellant to run. It was very similar to the one he'd built back at Lukedonia, but that one required the energy of the person using it.

" _This will be more difficult that I thought…..It's good that master, Tesamu and Raskreia are present at the guild. Even the likes of family leaders wouldn't dare do anything with them present. I would normally ask master, but seeing as how this is the family leader's doing, it would only bring him much pain. The only places left are Lukedonia and the human world. This time, the Lord is the one that needs to listen to me"_ he thought to himself firmly. " _This is really nuts…..it's almost as if the guy behind the screen needed me out of the scenes to give the others more time in the spotlight and then suddenly remembered a plot point from before…."_

* * *

 **Erza's room**

Not unlike Mira, the red haired beauty was also preparing herself for the journey. Thanks to her requip magic however, clothing wasn't a problem and the majority of her luggage consisted of Strawberry cakes, Instant Ramen, a sleeping bag, some Etherno restoring potions and some vitality potions. Despite carrying all this, her luggage wasn't as big as she thought it would be.

"All right, that should do it!" she told herself.

" _How long has it been….since the two of us went on a mission together….?"_

She then proceeded to cleanse herself with a relaxing shower, that also served to mentally prepare herself. Equipping her usual heart kreuz armor, she started walking along the lonely halls of the girl's dormitory.

"Ah, hello there, Erza-san!" called out Juvia, "Heading out?"

"Ah Juvia! Yeah, on a mission actually. The one at White Mist Town. Me and Mira are going together" Erza didn't know what she expected from the blue haired beauty, but shock was certainly not the reaction she anticipated.

"White Mist Town….?! Please tell me I didn't mishear that" she asked wide eyed.

"Y..yeah, what's the matter?". Juvia's face went really pale, loosing color.

"That place…..it's real bad news. When I was in Phantom, there were rumors flying left and right, which no doubt you've heard. But Jose, being the proud man he was, sent in many from the guild on the quest anyways. One barely made it alive, but not for long. What was strange was his condition. His face, pale like a white sheet, wobbly legs, blank eyes that stared out into nothingness. Upon examination, Jose found that he had multiple organ failure and a severe lack of blood. Erza-san….I know that those we sent in were not that powerful and that you and Mira-san would definitely fare better….still, I can't help feel uneasy about the whole thing" Erza stood motionless for a while, a tiny pit formed in her stomach. She composed herself, and patter Juvia in the head.

"Hey…it can't be that bad right? Besides, like you said, I'm not like those guys from Phantom, and Mira is also really strong. We'll be fine, don't worry" she assured. But the blue haired beauty couldn't stop worrying.

"Please….just take care of yourself, Erza san….promise me that you'll be back alright?"

"I promise"

* * *

 **Later that evening**

After bidding their farewells, the two beauties of FT made themselves comfortable in the dusty seats of the Magnolia Express. It was going to be long journey, 10 hours by train along the solitary magnolia countryside all the way west till central Fiore where the capital Crocus lay and then from there further west towards the edge of Fiore past the valley and through the woodlands for another 5 hours even using a Magic vehicle. But the duo wanted to avoid using the vehicle since the SE plug would need one of them to extinguish their mana for driving it. Hence, Erza proposed that they travel by a horse drawn carriage from the capital till the village. It would take them a couple more hours to reach White Mist Town, but it was safer that way.

"Makes you wonder doesn't it? The life of someone living so far away from civilization. I'm finding it hard to believe that they were even able to make contact with the other towns given that the villagers are at least 5 hours from the nearest town. If they had that kind of freedom, they would've done something to evacuate right?" asked Mira.

"That's true…maybe they managed to send in a message somehow and the ones who received it decided to make it known to the other towns so as to help them somehow….or this could also be a ploy crafted by the enemy" said the red haired beauty. "Either ways, we press on"

"Indeed…..what fun would it be otherwise?" stated Mira, giving a smirk. Strange, thought Erza. The she was showing signs of going back to the way she was before Lissana's death, to her confident self. Not that it was bad, just that it was strange to see her change her nature so swiftly. It's for the best, assured Erza to herself. She was going to need all the help she can, and having Mira run on fumes would be the last thing she was going to need.

Time went on, and the two didn't speak much after that, simply enjoying the scenery in silent understanding, the atmosphere bringing them closer to each other, rekindling a new bond between them. The train came to a gradual halt at its last stop, Crocus and the long arduous overnight train journey came to an end.

The duo quickly moved about the huge capital, found a place to stay, freshen themselves and get ready for the next part of their travel. Already travelling 10 hours was tiring enough mentally, and there were still 7 hours more to go. No one in the capital was willing to go along to the western lostlands of Fiore, so they had no choice but to buy an entire carriage. Quickly loading their stuff in, they set off from the outskirts of the capital.

* * *

 **Hours later**

The rocky terrain had been going on and on for quite a while now, and it wasn't until late into the evening until they saw a small blimp over the contour of the hill overlooking the town. Surprisingly, even the evening sky was brighter than that tiny lights that indicated the presence of the town. Unsurprisingly, it wasn't a huge town either, Mira and Erza could count about only about 20 houses or so. For about 1 hour before they entered the town, they had encountered dense white mist on their way. Even now, dregs of white mist lingered around the base of the town.

"It's even more creepier than I thought…" said Mira, shuddering a bit.

"Scared already?" teased Erza, nudging her. "But its not that I don't agree with you, I say we camp here for the night and enter the town when daylight is upon us"

"Sounds good!"

The two then spent the next few minutes setting up camp. Mira went off to look for food. Erza offered one of her strawberry cakes (although reluctantly at first), but the white haired beauty declined politely, saying she wasn't very fond of sweets. She returned with a couple of hunted birds, which the duo roasted with the help of a small fire and downed it with fresh water they found nearby.

"Whew, I'm beat!" declared Mira, and simply slumped against the grassy ground. Erza set up her sleeping bag and exquipped to her pj's. "We'll need to be at full strength tomorrow, so I'm calling it a day. G'night!"

"Good night…" and with that, the two allowed themselves to be enveloped by peaceful slumber.

.

.

*rustle*

.

.

*rustle* *rustle*

.

.

The sound of uneven footsteps as they caressed the grassy floor along with the rustling of the leaves didn't help the red haired beauty to get over her troubled sleep. She turned her head to the other side.

.

.

.

The sounds grew louder. This time, she slowly opened her eyes sleepily, angrily. All she saw was a dark, blurred figure taking a swipe at her. She would've taken the hit to her face normally, if not for the seriousness of the mission which was the reason for her disturbed sleep, but this also meant she was more alert about her surroundings. She did a backflip, avoiding the blow.

The moonlight illuminated the figure, revealing it to be that of a middle aged scrawny man with blood red eyes. He seemed to be in a daze. What really unsettled her the most was that even the sclera of the man's eyes were blood red, and his canines were much too long to be those of a humans'. The man once again rushed at her with outspread jaws at speeds beyond that of a normal man, and that too without using magic. The sudden outburst led her to reflexively counter him, and effectively sent him flying and crashing at a nearby tree.

The sound caused the sleeping Mira to also wake up from her sleep, but she was still quite drowsy unlike Erza. The man picked himself from the tree and continued unfazed.

"What's goin' on….?" Muttered Mira and then saw the scene on front of her.

"Tch!" Erza changed to her armor, and slashed at his torso. The man reeled from the strike, as blood slowly left his body through the wound. The effect was more than she expected, for his movements became more and more sluggish, until he came to a standstill. The man reached out with his hand, in one last desperate attempt and then moved no more.

Shock and guilt filled Erza's face, in the face of the miscalculation she'd made.

"….Is he…dead….?!" Breathed out Mira slowly, hands clasped over her mouth in surprise.

"No way….I just nicked him a little…that can't have been enough to…"

But then something else happened. The man's body glowed faintly with a tinge of red, before dissolving in tiny pellets of red light and drifting away into the endless skies.

"What the…." Exclaimed Mira.

"First someone attacks out of the blue who looks….wrong and then this happens….what's going on…" said Erza, her expression tense.

"Change of plans…..one of us will have to be on guard while the other rests taking turns" The two nodded in agreement, and were on their toes for the entire night until the morning sun peeked over the far horizon.

Little did they know that they would find the fate of that mysterious man more appealing than what they were going to be up against.

* * *

 **Phew, finally done. Super apologies for taking this long, my university work really drives me mad with all the extra work I needed to do! Anyway, thanks a lot for your patience, and thanks for reading. I'll be a lot more free from June, so expect more updates then. As promised, here's the current power rating of some of the characters. My reference is vsbattles and no power of friendship for FT members. Also, do keep in mind that this is immediately after the Laxus arc, so they don't have any of their equipment/powers from the future arcs in the story that may be mentioned at vsbattles.**

 **Do remember that all the nobelsse characters do NOT possess the power they do currently in the webtoon, since this story takes place before Rai's 820 year sleep, back when previous Lord still existed. So here are the power levels.**

* * *

 **Raizel – Island level**

 **Frankenstein – Mountain level (Can parry Gradeus's war axe, which could split a mountain in 2)**

 **Raskreia – City level**

 **Tesamu : - Large Town level (Same as Mira)**

 **Erza with her best equipment at this point – Small town level**

 **Mira with her satan soul at full power – Large Town level (just slightly below Raskreia)**

 **Acnologia in his dragon form – Continent level**

* * *

 **More characters to be revealed in future chapters!**


	22. Chapter 22: - White Mist Town

**Hey guys, I'm finally back with another chapter and I finally hit 100,000 words! Yay! I really thought about this one and the next one, and I really hope it's worth it! I had some issues to deal with, which was the reason for my delay. SO sorry, and once again, thank you so much for your support. Any and all reviews are appreciated and I shall be happy to read and even reply to your comments here in the 'response to reviews' section.**

* * *

 **Chapter 22: - White Mist Town**

As the morning sun hovered over the skies, the two beauties wearily made it to the town below after taking a quick bath in the nearby stream. The lack of sleep since last night's incident was evident from the bags under their eyes.

"Time to find out what's really happening" said Erza.

"Something to eat first would be nice….there's only so much I can handle at a time" countered Mira, the rumbling of her stomach answering what was her immediate worry.

"We should be able to find something to eat in the town"

The town itself, like they suspected contained only 19 houses, and one manor, which they naturally assumed was the place where the could find the one in charge of the town. As they walked past, they could see the windows of the houses slowly opening, whoever was inside certainly had an interest in the duo. Whether it be for good or bad, neither of the two could tell.

" An unpleasant aura hangs in the air" commented the red haired beauty.

"Indeed" agreed her ashen haired companion.

And so they walked on in silence through the soft, muddy path that lead all the way till the towering manor in front of them.

"Who goes there?" called a sentry posted at the entrance of the manor. Pretty old fashioned, thought Erza.

"We hail from Fairy Tail, we are here upon your request" replied Erza.

"All I can see are two lasses, one of whom doesn't even look suited for battle….you sure you aren' lost or somethin'?" asked the guard

*clang*

In an eye's blink, the red haired beauty disarmed the guard with a swift sword draw. It took a moment for him to realize that he'd lost his weapon.

"Wh..what the..?"

"Still think we're lost?" scoffed Erza.

The sentry could naught else but simply lead them inside in shock and silence. Mira offered an apologetic gesture towards the startled guard, and the two went inside.

The house itself was much smaller than their own guild halls, and that wasn't saying much. There was a creaky old staircase leading up to the second storey, a couple of windows by the far end covered by dusty curtains, two rooms each on each side and some furniture in the center. A middle aged man came walking over to the duo and offered a greeting. He then pointed them to take a seat.

"I take it you're here following our request?" he asked, his voice deep and rasp.

"Yes, we are S class mages from Fairy Tail, Erza Scarlet and Mirajane" replied the red head, pointing to herself and then to her ashen haired companion. "Looking at the request, it seems your village is in grave trouble, and you don't trust anyone to make it out successful"

"Aye, you're right. Our village, as you know, is isolated from the rest of the larger towns, making it an easy target for wagabonds and bandits to use as they see fit. Fortunately, seeing that we don't have much here, we're often left alone and people generally avoid coming here. Plus, the dense mist makes it really hard for people to actually make it all the way here. This also explains the reason why guilds have trouble helping us"

"That is regrettable…how can we be of help?" asked Erza, but Mira felt it necessary to interrupt.

"Hold on…if you don't mind me asking, you said that you had nothing of value here correct? Then why is the reward for the request so high? 10 billion jewels are no joke, so how do you explain that?" she asked. Erza looked at her partner surprised. It was a legit point, one that she should've thought about herself, but out of all the people, Mira was the last one she expected to be suspicious of someone.

"That's very simple. The lives of the villagers are more important than any material asset. We are about 19 houses here excluding mine, and 10 billion jewels is all we could cough up. Naturally including mine. All of us have given up all the money we have just so we can acquire some peace and quiet. Hope that answers your question" he replied, his tone unchanged. If the mayor was really hiding something, he was doing a really good job of it. But his tone was unchanged and his expressions were the same when Mira fired that question at him, so the duo put aside their doubts for the time being.

"Getting to the matter at hand, what exactly is the problem? From the flyers, we can see that you mentioned several other S class level mages went missing, right?"

"That is correct. Usually this village is calm and quiet. But every once in a while, someone that wanders bit too far from the village ends up missing. Some even turned up dead, but usually people return. But, the strangest marks would be upon their bodies. Like snake bites. The enigmatic part is that there were no signs of poisoning or any other noticeable injury on the victim's bodies. These bite marks also didn't heal, no matter what we did. Those that got bit act dazed and moved about without reason, as if their decisions were out of the conscious." He explained.

"Hmm….I see" added Mira. "It's still a lot less to go with, but I theorize that it could be a hypnotic agent that was injected into the minds of the infected. Am I to assume that this only happened with the villagers and not with the S class mages? After all, mages of that level have extraordinary levels of magic tolerance"

"Actually, it's the other way around. Us villagers are the ones that get killed, and the S class mages are usually back. Some of the mages don't return, but most stay back here in the village. When asked, they don't respond. Their speech is slurred and without reason."

"Where are they?" questioned Erza.

"Some left to go wander in the forests again, whereas some remained in the villager's houses. Since they don't normally cause any harm, we didn't find any reason to send them away. Plus, we weren't sure they would get back to the mainland safe all by themselves, so we didn't send them away either." Answered the mayor.

"Oh but I should mention….there are….periods when the S class mages do act normal. They would suddenly bolt outside, and disappear for days together, and when they return, they would have new scars. Some even change in appearance. For example, one mage's hair was turned white, the other one had her eye color change to blood red."

The entire situation was….strange to say the least. The pair hadn't heard about anything that could induce….this. Change in appearance, hypnotic trances powerful enough to subjugate S class mages…..This seemed to be something out of the worl-

Mira awoke with a jolt, her eyes wide open.

"Find something?" asked her companion.

"Just a hunch" whispered Mira "I'll explain once we're outside" She turned to the mayor. "Thank you so much for sharing your story with us. It will help us a lot, since we know we don't know what exactly we should be dealing with and a forewarning is always helpful. I promise we'll try our best to resolve the crisis in your town" she said smiling.

"No, I'm the one who's thankful. The two of you came to us when no one else did. I'm really grateful. If there is anything we can do to help, don't hesitate to ask"

"Right. We'll be off then" mentioned Erza. Mira gave a small nod and made their way to the exit.

"Oh and before you depart, I feel you should know. Only once have we been able to get a glimpse of whatever's been spiriting off people. One witness, a young lass, said that she saw a shadow of a person in the midst of the night carrying someone near the coast. I'd suggest you start there. If you want to speak to the girl, she lives just 3 houses east of the coast."

"Much obliged" came the apt reply before the FT duo left.

* * *

 **The port town of Hargeon**

Frankenstein sighed as he de-boarded from his makeshift ship. Going all the way back to Lukedonia meant a long trip back. Well, a long trip away from his master. Although it was very clear that master was in trusted hands, not to mention under the watch of the Lord's own flesh and blood, he still couldn't shake off the feeling that something ominous was coming.

As he proceeded to the inner sections of the town, he noticed that one bar in particular was more lively than the others. Normally, he'd avoid unnecessary contact with the locals, but upon hearing the familiar voice of his student, he turned the other way.

"…..een a man with long blond hair wearing a black suit, blue eyes and who's about this tall?" asked the hooded figure in the voice of Tesamu, raising his hand roughly to Frankenstein's own height. The person being questioned, a brunette bar maid looked on with an interested expression on her face. The disciple however, was oblivious to the woman's advances. Frankenstein, knowing how much attention he would draw to himself if he went in openly, froze the people nearby except his disciple through his mind control and confronted his target.

" [Tesamu! Warum bist du hier?! Ich habe gedacht dass du ins Gilde warren…?] " questioned the blond scientist, speaking in his native tongue German.

(Tesamu! Why are you here?! I thought you were in the guild….?)

"[ Professor! Leider, Ich muste dich treffen, weil ich erinnerte mich etwas sehr wichtig…aber warum sprechen wir uns in Deutsch?]" replied the disciple in kind.

(Professor/Teacher ! Sorry, I had to meet you, because I remembered something very important…but why are we speaking in German?)

" [Zu viele leute heir. Komm bitte, lass uns irgendwo privat sprechen] " suggested Frankenstein., pointing towards the exit.

(Too many people. Come, let's go somewhere private to talk)

Slowly, they navigated through the frozen people around them and moved on to the nearby dark alley. Franky then lifted his skill.

"So then, with that out of the way, tell me. What brings you here? I thought you were injured from your last battle?" asked Frankenstein.

"I recovered, thanks to the efforts of FT. Some healing potions seem to do the trick. And besides, although my werewolf powers are definitely much weaker since I'm a hybrid, it was good enough to heal myself. I came here because I remembered something really important. Although the details escape me, I do know that it's a matter worth investigating" breathed Tesamu. For some reason, he seemed to be troubled with something. Frankenstein put it away as something insignificant for the time being, but it was retained in his mind regardless.

"Go on. I'm listening" prodded the blond scientist.

"This is something from back when the people who experimented on me sent me away to work for them. One time, I was sent to a human village. At first, it seemed to be nothing ordinary. Later, I noticed that there was a war going on that had ended only recently, and evidence of it still remained. What's peculiar about the battleground was the presence of claw marks. No human war could've done that. I also found traces of huge explosions, dismembered structures and so on. It's as if the fight was more than what the survivors of the village claimed it was. I just feel….for some reason that this was not completely unrelated to the traitors who performed the experiments. This could be the chance for us to gather some evidence against the nobles that rebelled against Lukedonia and also present an opportunity for the Lord to take a stance against them"

Frankenstein narrowed his eyes. If what his student was saying was true, this would be more than enough to convince Lukedonia to see the error in their ways of being too trusty of their noble citizens. It would also make it much easier for him to hunt the people who experimented on Tesamu. In any case, this was the kind of lead he was looking for. During his stay at Lukedonia, he already knew that Ragus Tardio, Urokai Agvain, Zarga Siriana, Gradeus, Edian Drossia and Roctis Kravei were the six who were anti-human and the ones who always acted suspicious. With evidence, going after them would be and teaching them their place would be _so_ _ **satisfying.**_

Frankenstein let out a toothy grin.

"Alright, lead the way, Tesamu" said the mad scientist, flashing a grin. "Oh and good job" Tesamu flashed a smile in return, feeling proud of himself.

* * *

 **Currently at Fairy Tail**

Things remained the way they did at Fairy tail, even with the absence of the beauties of Fairy Tail. Natsu and Lucy returned from another small mission, with Natsu practically munching on the flame lachrima they received as the mission reward.

"Lacrima aren't candy!" protested Lucy comedically, eyes popping. "And what do you mean you lost the reward money?! Who the heck'll pay for my rent!" she finished, comedically crying.

"Don' worry about it too much, if it comes to that, you can crash at my place!" offered the flame mage, as if it was the most obvious thing.

"Like hell I can!" came the protesting reply from the celestial mage.

Cana was having a drinking contest with Macao and Wakaba as usual, and not surprisingly, the latter 2 were losing. But somehow, that entire ordeal seemed lifeless without Mira or Erza reprimanding them about drinking in the afternoon. They drank more to make up for the absence of the beauties, and then remembered how much they've had already, remember about Mira and Erza and rinse and repeat.

Gray had just returned from another mission as well, his reward being food coupons for the newly opened bakery in town. Perhaps he could keep them for Erza, he thought to himself. It would always help to be on her good side, so that even if he did screw up some other time, his 'punishment' wouldn't be as severe. The topic of food did remind him of something else,

"Yo gramps, without Frankenstein around, you think those two'll be alright? From what I remember, those two are new to the place aren't they?" questioned the ice mage. And to no one's surprise, his shirt was missing by that point, and those around were pretty sure they wouldn't get an answer to that mystery.

"Hrmm….I suppose so. It would be better for someone to show them around the place, so they know where to go for what they need. So how about it? Any volunteers?" said Makarov, looking around. To his surprise, he found no one. The usually cheerful, nosy and helpful brats of his being so uninterested in this was surprising to say the least. Perhaps it was the fact that the house Frankenstein prepared for them was out of town, and those that were not on missions had just returned from one.

In the end, Levy volunteered, for she'd heard Frankenstein kept an amazing collection of books at his place, and being the book nerd she was, it would be like a treasure hunt. Perhaps she could loan herself a few once the blond scientist returned.

A few hours later, the blue haired mage made her way to the huge mansion the blond scientist had prepared for the nobles. She was overwhelmed by the very presence of it. Questions began flooding her mind. _How did he get the money for this? How did he do this in such a short time? Is it really something he needed to do for just a couple of people staying here? This thing could probably fit the entire guild twice over! And why a place so far away from town?!_

She sighed to herself, putting away the questions that were eating away at her mind for now, and gave gentle knocks at the regal looking door. The door gently opened, but no one stood behind it.

"Huh? It's open?" At first she deduced that Rai and Raskreia must be away somewhere, but that didn't explain the opened door. _They could be in trouble,_ she thought to herself. She then made her way inside, the massive hallway practically leaving her agape at the spot. _Damn, this place is massive!_ she noted. In her front lay a huge hall, complete with a majestic glass chandelier and several other smaller glass fixtures along the walls. There were two stairways leading to the right and to the left upper layers of the mansion at the far end of the hall. To her immediate left and right were two corridors, each with either windows to the outside world or rooms further in. The corridors then went on further inside the mansion.

 _How in the world am I going to find those 2? This place is a maze! Did the REALLY need such a huge place to live? Maintenance must be a pain in the ass!_

What made it harder was the pindrop silence in the place. There wasn't a lot of stuff occupying the place, which meant even the smallest sound would echo around. So even if there were only 2 people, it would not be that difficult to look for them. This further worried her that something might have happened to them. Levy shivered upon the thought and randomly decided to try all the rooms until she found them.

A library, a bedroom with a king size bed, a lab of sorts, 2 empty rooms, a dressing room, 2 bathrooms, another smaller bedroom, a study, a wine cellar, and a locked room leading to the basement. After spending about a half hour on the afore said rooms, she proceeded to search for the next one. Finally, her efforts paid off, her eyes now looking upon two solitary figures sitting at the opposite ends of a table, with bowls in front of them that were steaming. There was a delicious fragrance in the air that didn't quite match with the heavy atmosphere in the room. Rai and Raskreia looked solemn, their faces not betraying their feelings. The room itself was another bedroom..? Levy was unsure. It had 3 closets along the wall to the left, 2 sofas separated by the table in front of her, a door at the right corner, a glass chandelier. The most noticeable feature however, was a huge window, that was almost 3/4th the size of the wall at the far end of the room. From this room, given it's positioning, one could gaze upon the town of magnolia in all its glory.

"Um….Rai…? Raskreia…? Is everything fine…?" she asked uncertainly, the atmosphere in the room intimidating her. She inched closer to see what was on those bowls that made the two act that way.

"Master was worried that you might have trouble managing by yourself since you are relatively new to town, so I came to check if everything's ok.." Still no answer. She got a look at the bowls. There was a dark orangish froth on both of them, complete with noodles, eggs, seaweed, fishcake amongst other things. A delicious looking meal, if she said so herself. That explained the delicious smell. Whoever thought Ramen could smell that good? Did these two make it? _Perhaps I should ask them for the recipe,_ she thought. But first….

"Um, Raskreia…? What are you both doing…?"

"Is it not obvious…?" she replied in a monotonic voice. "I'm waiting for it to increase in quantity"

There was deathly silence in the room. Levy felt more confused than before.

"I'll have to thank Frankenstein when he returns, for leaving us with such a wonderful dish. It seems I've underestimated the people of this land" she said solemnly. Rai nodded in agreement. Now that she recalled something from earlier, one of the rooms was a kitchen, which did seem like it was used just minutes ago. She found uncooked noodles in an urn, and some sort of powdered mix in another. There was an earthen pot with water that had been boiling, and a note which read,

" _How to make Instant Ramen 101 by Frankenstein"_ and went on to explain in a VERY SPECIFIC way as to how to prepare the said dish. Now THAT explains this, she thought to herself deadpanned.

"So then….nothing's awry?" she asked, exasperated. Of course there was nothing to worry about, what was she thinking? What were THEY thinking?! These 2 demolished an entire army of shadow soldiers all by themselves!

"Don't tell me…..you've been just sitting like that for…how long exactly…?"

"Just 15 minutes. It's a bit troublesome, but the end result is quite worth the wait" she said, quite proudly infact. Probably because of the fact that she'd prepared it herself, instant ramen at that. Levy wondered how the others would react.

"Uh…I'm do sincerely hope that you know that letting the noodles increase in quantity also means that the flavor is lost in the noodles and you wont have any broth left? And that it's possibly NOT a good idea to let the noodles become that bloated…? I'm just saying…." She said, with the most awkward smile she'd ever managed to decorate her face with. But then again, nothing could've been more awkward than the scene she was witnessing. The noble duo sat there, not reacting to what Levy had just told them. They slowly had a small portion of the noodles. By this time, most of the broth was gone, and the whole thing was almost lukewarm. Rai and Raskreia took a couple of seconds to process what had transpired and froze with shock, when the truth of what Levy had told them hit them.

Levy nearly fell to the floor from disbelief. Two of the strongest fighters she knew were struggling with _eating_ ramen. _The world is certainly a big place,_ she thought. Looks like this would be a long day after all, for these two might need some serious help with some things. Levy sighed, and got to work.

* * *

 **At the shores of white mist town, later that evening**

After retreating to their makeshift tent past their meeting with the mayor, Mira and Erza discussed their next move.

"So, what did you find out? One minute we were talking with the mayor, and the next you jolt as if you found something. So? What is it?" asked Erza.

"Think about it, Erza. One mage's hair changed to white. The other one had her eye color change to red. Hypnotic trances that work on S class mages" explained Mira.

"I don't see your point. Isnt that what we need to find out?" questioned the red haired beauty.

"Don't they seem a bit…. _out of the world_ to you?" she prodded on, stressing on the 'out of the world part. Then it struck her as well.

"Wait….you don't mean?!"

"Exactly. No magic we know of brings about changes like that. This must be something to do with where Frankenstein and Rai come from. Now that I think about it, Rai and Raskreia's eyes a red too, aren't they? I'm guessing that could be another connection.

"Hmm….certainly, this does tie in with that. But eye color? I think it's still too early to say that Rai and Raskreia have something to do with it. We need more evidence" countered Erza.

"That guy we fought earlier….he had bloodshot eyes as well….but…I suppose, this is still too early until we know exactly what we're dealing with. All I'm saying is….there's much more to this village than just mysterious disappearances, and if I'm not wrong, the mayor must be in it as well. They already know that staying here is a bad idea. Yet they made no effort to move out. Plus, if the attacks happen to capture S class mages, why is it that the villagers are still keeping them in custody? If you ask me, it would attract nothing but trouble. There's something definitely fishy going on." Said Mira, her voice full of suspicion. The red haired beauty couldn't believe that the Mira she thought had turned so meek and trusty towards everyone was talking in a tone full of doubt and suspicion.

"What's the plan then?" asked Titania.

Mira let out a heavy sigh.

"For now, let's just continue our mission. You know, keep a low profile. Assuming the strange guy that we encountered the last night are the kind of enemies that we're going to be facing, we should be good to go. We don't want to give any hint that we're suspicious of the mayor. Once we take care of whatever is troubling the village, we should go confront the mayor once we know nothing else is in our way. This way, we would also save the S class mages and the villagers from that guy's grasp" suggested the white haired beauty. Erza couldn't agree more. After all, they covered the major aspects of their suspicions. With how strong they were, what could go wrong?

* * *

 **A few hours later**

Erza changed to her heaven's wheel armor, and Mira transformed her arms and legs to her satan soul form. She wanted to conserve what magic power she had, lest she needed it when the situation got really dire. There was still nothing in sight and it was still quite some time before it went pitch black. Erza spent time improving her sword throwing skills and also her own swings. Mira on the other hand tried to revert and transform in bursts, so that she could use the full power of her satan soul explosively in short impulses for instant power needs. But that didn't help. Not with the pressure they were feeling, for whatever reason. It wasn't like an oppressive feeling they got whenever they were hit with the presence of a huge magic energy. This was more on their mental side. The nervousness, the uncertainty. Whatever they did, it didn't help. There was an eerie silence too, and the moonless sky didn't help either. The only thing interrupting the silence was the sound of the waves slowly washing over their minds. _Why?_ Thought Mira. _Something is wrong here,_ she thought again _Really wrong_. She went through her strategy again and again, and from a logical point of view, it looked perfect.

She breathed in and out, in and out, in and out. _Can't get cold feet before a battle Mira,_ she chided herself. Perhaps she should try reciting a small prayer. HAH! A devil reciting a prayer. How ironic, she said to herself. Hopefully, her red haired partner didn't have the same trouble.

That's when she heard it. Footsteps. Soft and slow, with precise, graceful movements. And then another set, and then another. She could make out the three figures to whom the footsteps belonged to. But they looked nothing like the thing they met yesterday. These figures were wearing white robes covering them from top to bottom. One of them was using a cane to support himself or herself and was slightly hunched over, like how an elderly would. She could only make out the lower part of the face of the middle one. He/She wasn't smiling, and only had a grimace. The last one was the most expressing of them all. Shoulder length blood red hair, and a wide, satisfied grin on his face. On getting a closer look, she saw that all three of them were indeed men, for their body build was like one. The red haired one had an eye patch, but the thing that caught both their attentions was the eyes.

Blood red. Like Raizel and Raskreia. But these eyes were looking down on them. By this point, even Erza was on high alert, already armed. She stood her guard, not moving an inch and carefully observing the trio approaching them. Normally, Mira or Erza would never go on full alert without assessing who they were facing. But this time, every inch of Mira's instincts told her just one thing.

 _Run._


	23. Chapter 23: - Fall

**Response to reviews: -**

 **Fayre Eferhild Di Rozalia : - First off, I wanna say, that naming sense is pretty cool, and very noblesse-ish! Thanks a lot! This chapter will be really worth the wait, I guarantee it!**

 **JustSk8n : - One of the things I love about Noblesse! Expect a lot more moments like this one in the future chapters**

 **Killerfox116 : - Thank you so much! Really glad you liked the story!**

* * *

 **Chapter 23: - Fall**

 _Run._

She couldn't believe how _scared_ she felt. Mirajane Strauss, who was an S class mage and one of the strongest mages in Fiore. There was no rational thought or logic behind it, nay. It was like an instinct. She could tell that Erza's battle senses told her the same. Why did these people make her feel this way?

"Who are you?!" demanded Erza, hiding her unease. The three continued walking towards them, not saying a word. The red haired one's lips spread out in a wide grin.

"Stop!" she repeated. "State your names and your purpose! Depending on what you say, we might.." Before she could finish, the red haired one started laughing slowly. Color shot up Erza's face, her hands clenching her swords tighter.

"Something funny?" she demanded again, this time more defiantly.

"Hehehe…..Hahahahaha….." continued the red haired one, "A puny human dares ask ME who I am? Pathetic as always, wherever they go…..LEARN YOUR PLACE!" he roared, glaring at them with his single eye. Erza and Mira immediately felt their bodies go slightly numb, as if something was constricting them.

"That's it!" screamed Erza, launching one of her numerous swords of her Heaven's Wheel armor towards the red haired noble. He simply swatted it away like he would a fly. The other two said naught, and simply continued to observe the exchange.

"Grr…how about this then!" challenged the red haired beauty, preparing around 50 more of her floating swords.

"No, Erza wait!" called out Mira. Erza's swords froze just short.

"They're not people to be underestimated. Surely you know that. Not to mention, we're outmatched 3 to 2. If I guess right, just that guy is probably as strong as Frankenstein. We….can't beat them…." she said dejectedly. "Our best bet…is to retreat and come back with some backup…"

"Did you just say….that I'm as good as Frankenstein..?" spat out Urokai, poison in his words. "

*fwip*

The white haired beauty felt a light wind past her, and in the next instant, stood the mysterious hooded red haired person.

"YOU BITCH!"

She felt a sharp pain in her gut, and she felt the wind get knocked out of her entire being. Even though she'd managed to block the hit with her hands that she'd transformed into their Satan Soul form, she still got a good hit to her gut, and flew straight to the rocks behind her.

"MIRA!"

"Calm down, Urokai" said the other man in a calm, gruff voice. "Seeing you act like that without any class pains me. Perhaps I should handle this after all. You might kill them by accident"

"SHUT UP! I can handle a few puny humans, Zarga!" roared the man called Urokai.

Mira doubled over, coughing blood. _Looks like I'll have to go full power from the get go!_ She thought to herself. _If I'm lucky, it shouldn't affect the nearby villagers._ Erza rushed to her companion's side.

"Mira! Are you alright?!" she questioned, worry and concern on her face.

"Heheh...I've been through worse" she breathed out, "Still, from their conversation, it looks like they don't plan on killing us, which might be good for us. As I thought, our best bet is to get away. If we work together, it doesn't seem too far fetched. I'm gonna release my full Satan Soul form, and you should go you're your Nakagami armor" she suggested.

Nakagami. Her most powerful armor. She really wanted her to draw all her cards. That would also mean using 2nd origin, which she could only use for about a minute before it ran out and left her exhausted. But Mira was no different either. Give her current condition, she can probably maintain her Satan soul form for a few moments, give or take.

"But how do you plan on getting out of here? Even if we can stall him, there are still 2 other enemies" questioned the red head.

"Yeah….I'm getting there. Stall them for as long as you can, I'll gather my strength, and create a distraction. Once a window of opportunity opens, I'll fly us both out of here as far as I can" explained Mira.

"Alright, that sounds like a pla-oh shoot, incoming!" screamed Erza in alarm, kicking away Mira to safety and propelling herself away from the attack.

"Enough Bickering!" roared Urokai.

"Tch!" After making sure that Mira was alright with a glance, she backflipped away from Urokai, changing into her Nakagami armor in the midst. The air throbbed with power, a foreboding aura in the air. Naturally Erza made sure to draw from her second origin after, in order to avoid being hit with Magic Deficiency from the armor.

"Hoh…..that power is impressive…..I would even say greater than your average noble….this kind of power rivals the power of a clan member of Lukedonia" remarked Ragus, his attention focused on Erza. It seemed like this woman might be worth studying after all.

"You think a fancy, low class outfit change can save your puny life?! Think again!" he said, lunging forward with another powerful punch aimed at her. This time however, she evaded with almost no difficulty, completely startling the unsuspecting noble.

"This 'Fancy Outfit' does more than change my appearance, as you shall soon see" she said simply, slashing with her halberd at his right arm. The red haired noble barely avoided the attack, but not without losing a few strands of his hair. Needless to say, he was not impressed and only continued to glare at her. Charging up his fist with his red aura, he sent two swiveling serpentine figures at Erza.

Erza intercepted them head on, smirking at Urokai. _Nakagami Armor erases all that come in contact with its space,_ she thought to herself confidently, and struck back at the incoming attack.

It seemed to work, but just briefly. Her smirk disappeared when the snakes split when hit with her attack, but they joined back together and continued advancing towards her anyways. A loud boom could be heard where the red aura snakes landed, but the attack wasn't effective either ways. Erza sustained superficial injuries, and simply dusted herself off. But that wasn't what surprised Erza.

"Impossible…my armor nullifies all magic!" she exclaimed.

"And since when did we look like mages to you?" retorted Urokai, grinning widely. Then it hit her. _These people don't use magic_ , she reasoned. But then again, erasing that attack hadn't been her aim after all. What she really went after was…

*splat*

A large gash appeared over Urokai's right arm, which started dripping blood red. Shock and disbelief adorned his already ticked off face.

"Wh..what is this…?! A mere human…..managed to wound me….?" he stammered, his anger swallowing half his words.

"Always prepare yourself for your attack to fail. Then, it will surely not fail" said Erza. "I can tell you're the type that see humans as nothing more than bugs…and THAT, will be your undoing"

 _Must've learned that from Frankenstein,_ chuckled Mira. She still lay low, not attracting too much attention to herself. Their best bet would be for Erza to stall and tire Urokai for as long as she can, so that the 2 of them can escape after Mira delivers a decisive blow that would buy them enough time for them to get away.

"Oho….I see, apart from being able to nullify magic, that halberd can also cut through anything in front of it. I suppose it cuts through the 'space' in front of it's slash…." Theorized Ragus.

"Perhaps I should take over…" suggested Zarga, stepping forward, but Ragus stopped him. "Clearly that woman is provoking him….and the way she attacked Urokai….why do I see a flair of Frankenstein's ways?"

"That won't be necessary. It is not often one sees a mere human coming close to wounding a clan leader seriously. This will also be a lesson to Urokai to not to underestimate one's enemies, no matter who they are…but Frankenstein..? Now it makes sense. As annoying it is to deal with that here again, it will be inconsequential soon enough….hehehehehehe" said Ragus slowly.

"COCKY INCOMPETENT HUMAN…..DID YOU REALLY THINK YOU'D MADE A DIFFERENCE JUST BECAUSE YOU CUT ME ONCE BY CATCHING ME OFF GUARD?! I THINK NOT!" roared Urokai, throwing his hand into the air. A swirl of energy surrounded the sky. "COME, DRAGUS!"

A red swirl of energy surrounded his hand, and in a flash was a weapon. It was a glaive, the most finest one she'd every laid her eyes on, and Erza had seen a LOT of weapons. It had an ornate black blade on the end of a pole with a golden socket shaft configuration. Erza gulped. Urokai was already too strong without that weapon. If she assumed it was like anything she thought it was, they were never getting out of this mess alive.

 _My skin is trembling,_ thought Mira. Urokai's punch from earlier confirmed one thing. He was strong enough physically to create enough force as to make a large crater with his bare hands. After all, ever with her hands transformed to her Satan Soul form, she was helpless to block it. But this weapon of his was seriously bad news. Unsettling him was a bad idea.

Urokai lunged, thrusting Dragus at her neck. She had BARELY enough time to counter. Sparks flew as their weapons made contact, and the force of it sent her arms ringing. She almost dropped her halberd from the impact.

 _Impossible,_ breathed Erza to herself shocked. _Nakagami armor can cut through anything…._

"Hoh…? Your flimsy weapon didn't break from getting cut by Dragus…? I have to admit, that IS a good weapon, almost makes me puke that a human made something that actually isn't as useless as it's maker" spat Urokai. "It seems however, the same can't be said for its wielder"

 _Huh…?_ Her thoughts seemed to flow to her in slow motion. The shoulder pads on her armor creaked and fell apart, along with her neck guard. The sash on the armor was sliced cleanly in half. Two thin, blood red lines appeared along her chest, in a cross shape. With shaking hands, she gently touched them, and the sensation of warm blood moistening her hands were proof enough of reality. The cuts slowly started dripping, pain shooting up from them soon after. She fell to her knees, her eyes still wide open in shock. _Exactly how many times DID he attack her, in that short moment….?_ But still, she couldn't believe she was incapacitated with an injury such as this. She used some of her strength to feel her wound, only to see that the cuts were atleast half an inch deep. Her bleeding wasn't helping her condition either. Combined with her armor's magic demand, she really was in a dangerous state.

"ERZA!" screamed Mira, although her voice was only half as loud to Erza's ears.

"And now, human scum…..YOU…DIE!" snarled Urokai, with a nasty grin on his face. Ragus sighed. Looks like someone would have to stop him after all…..He pointed Zarga to Urokai.

"NO YOU DON'T!" screamed Mira at the top of her voice, engulfing the area with titanic magic power. Her eyes became darker, her hair wilder, her ears more elf -like, and her canines longer. Her arms were covered in scales and sprouted fin like extensions. The most noticeable change however, was the spiny, metallic tail on her back and the bat like wings on her shoulder blades. Her body was also covered in scars not present before. Overall, her expression was much more menacing.

She didn't have long left. The red haired noble was taken off guard, and that was all the distraction she needed. She had no time to worry about the other 2, for she was sure they wouldn't get in her way after her attack. Cupping her hands, she gathered all the energy she could muster, in the form of a large, black sphere.

"Soul Extinctor" she breathed and fired it off towards the unsuspecting duo standing much behind Urokai. Since Erza was right in front of Urokai, she would get hit with it too if she wasn't too careful, so she aimed for the 2 nobles at the back. The whole thing took her less than 2 seconds to initiate, and given how fast they were, she probably wouldn't be able to get in a direct hit, but Soul Extinctor had a wide area of effect. They wouldn't get away completely unscathed for sure.

The explosion covered the entire landscape with its devastating blast, the shockwave sending powerful waves into the distant ocean. Mira couldn't confirm what had happened to the nobles who were at the receiving end, nor to Urokai, but she couldn't afford to anyway. Just before her attack struck, she used some of her remaining power to cover the gap between her and Erza, grabbed her, and made it for the skies. As the explosion progressed, the powerful winds generated from her attack helped her to steer away from the battlefield. Without looking back, she strained her wings to fly far, far away from the nightmare that would haunt her for days to come.

* * *

 **Somewhere near the war-torn lands in the human village in the human world**

Frankenstein and Tesamu finally made it all the way to ground zero of Muzaka and Rai's epic battle. Their eyes witnessed nothing but dust and debris for as far as their eyes could see. There were signs of explosions everywhere, and there wasn't a single thing not in pieces.

"Hmm….where do we start?" questioned Tesamu, looking around. Frankenstein fished out a couple of gloves, one for himself and another for Tesamu.

"Feel like doing some field investigation, my student?" asked Frankenstein.

"Just like old times" chuckled the disciple. The two took to different ways, examining buildings, debris and the dirt for anything resembling blood, footprints or remnants of explosions and residual energies from the battle.

"Hmm…a large dent on one side, with signs of rapid corrosion. Imprints of what looks like a claw on the head and on the side." Noted the blond scientist. "Evidence suggests Muzaka lifted this and flung it at Master, who then used his blood shield to block the blow. Contact with Master's blood field caused it to rapidly corrode….this tells me nothing interesting" said the scientist, pushing up his glasses. "Except for the fact that I've to find something bigger to throw at him when I see him…oh wait, he's most likely dead" he said, clapping his hands.

"Blood, dried. Estimated to be days old. Verification of the person to whom it belongs to will be difficult without equipment" went off Tesamu, conducting his own investigation. "This is useless"

And on it went, with the duo finding mostly nothing that might resemble a clue, or give them hints about what might have happened. It was getting quite late, and more difficult to look around. Their clothes were caked in dirt, something that was biting at Frankenstein's mind. He simply needed to go back and get a change of outfit.

"Huh…what's that….?" noted Frankenstein. Lying down were what looked like uniforms, specifically those of human soldiers. They had an insignia that he didn't recognize, but he didn't need to. When they investigated the human village earlier, they remembered seeing the same insignia.

"Uniform of foot soldiers…but why would they be here…..?" wondered the blond scientist.

"Master~~" called out Tesamu, from a distance away. "Look what I found!" he shouted, breathing heavily. Arrow heads and broken arrows. 4 of them, specifically. The heads were caked in dried blood. In his hands were also 4 crossbows, with their strings still attached. They had also discovered hoof prints and footprints of boots belonging to said soldiers. A ton of questions came flooding to his mind…..why were human soldier uniforms strewn about the ground in a battle like this? Who in the right mind would even get involved in this conflict?! And why human weapons in this kind of a battle…? Since neither Muzaka nor his master ever needed human weapons to fight, and putting together the story that his Master told him, the only explanation could be that…

"Humans, for some reason decided to get involved in this battle" reasoned Frankenstein. "But the only reason for this can be to….."

" **Kill Ashleen** " answered another voice, completely taking the two of them aback. The figure to whom the voice belonged to was walking towards them casually. Tall, muscular, with long, silvery grey hair reflecting the light from the sunset. He had numerous battle scars, long eyebrows and sharp grey eyes. He wore a red, furry shirt and black pants.

"Muzaka….." muttered Frankenstein under his breath, wide eyed.

"Been a while, Frankenstein….who's that? Your disciple I presume? But I thought he died…?" pondered the ex-werewolf lord, still walking towards them.

"How are you…."

"Still alive? Come now, aren't you the one who always has all the answers? If Raizel's still alive, is it truly such a surprise that I am as well?" he asked. It was hard to tell if there was any hostility in his words, but that went completely past Frankenstein for the moment.

"How do you know about that?!" asked Frankenstein, and then gasped as the reality hit him. "The traitors…."

"You're quick to catch on….truly a brilliant mind, perhaps the best I've seen." He replied, confirming the fact that Muzaka truly was with Ragus and the others. Frankenstein came looking for physical evidence and ended up finding a witness. He couldn't have asked for a better deal. Unless….

"But still…..even after figuring what happened, you still use the term traitor" added Muzaka, his tone serious. "Is this hypocrisy a trait of humanity? Suiting themselves as they see fit"

"…"

"Silence….as expected. My biggest regret is that I turned my back on those who called me their own, and instead sacrificed for those that didn't deserve it. In the end, those mistakes cost me dearly. Too dearly. Even so, despite having turned my back on them, they still welcomed me back. Despite our past disputes. Never again shall I do so" he said firmly.

" _So he's with the werewolves now…?...! Why didn't I see this coming! I can't believe it, now it all makes sense! But from the looks of it, Muzaka himself hasn't realized this…what's the best route I can take from here….? Convince him? An all out conflict or should I retreat, gather more facts so that I can take help from Lukedonia? If he's with the werewolves now, this can turn into a nasty situation if I take the wrong step…..damn! Why now?! The fact doesn't change that his daughter died at the hands of humans. Evidence here proves that much already. Which is also the core of the problem….but why do I get the feeling that finding these things here was too convenient? If someone really was behind all this, they wouldn't leave any evidence behind. Unless…..they want to lead us into coming up with the wrong conclusion…..in which case, I need more information about the events that happened here"_ Frankenstein's mind was running on all cylinders, all the while trying to come up with the best possible situation to resolve the matter at hand.

"If you still turn back now, I'll let you leave. Hope that our paths never cross again. As much as I am in rage about Raizel's interference, I am equally grateful that he has recovered all of his life force in his time at 'Earthland'. Out of respect for you and Raizel, I'll let you both turn back. I'll even overlook the fact that your disciple has a slight aura of a werewolf. I won't poke into your business, as much as I hope you wont into mine. If you still linger here, I **shall** retaliate. Fare thee well, Frankenstein. Take care of Raizel" he said, turning his back.

" _What…..did he just say….? Earthland….? The only way he can know about that is…."_

"I already told you, teacher…It's possible that the werewolves are working with the traitors amongst the nobles. There's no other way I could have powers like these…" said Tesamu slowly.

"Heh….hehehehehehehe…HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Fare thee well?! Have you gone nuts?! Perhaps those lunatics in your clan messed up your brain too much? I came here to uncover the truth, and not even you can stop me from doing so. And besides" threatened the mad scientist, cracking his fists "I still need to pay you back for nearly killing my master" he finished grinning widely. His fists were covered in Dark Spear's signature purple aura. Tesamu got ready for battle as well. Same old teacher, always taunting his enemies before a fight. Still, he never imagined even Frankenstein would find it funny to taunt the leader of the werewolves.

"Sigh…..Almost made me believe in you" said Muzaka, still very calm. Fur covered his arms and his hands changed into claws. "I won't take any chances this time"

Somewhere in Magnolia, Raizel had the most unusual feeling in the pit of his mind.

* * *

 **White Mist Town**

Mirajane felt the salty breeze of the ocean rush go past her. Not good. If they still hadn't gone past the ocean, they weren't too far from the battlefield. The attack had taken a really heavy toll on her, and she didn't even have enough energy to fly properly. They were _far_ too slow. Added to the fact that Erza was barely dangling from her arms, it was taking her everything to keep them away. She wondered also if the village nearby was spared from the force of her attack. She really hoped it had. At the very least, she wished for the child she had seen in the house that the mayor had pointed at to be safe.

It was a bit unusual, to say the least. She looked about Natsu's age, with long brown, braided hair with two bangs on either side of her face, blue eyes. No one in the village seemed to be her parents, and she lived alone by herself. What was a girl like that doing there?

Just then, Erza, who had been unconscious all the while, slowly jerked awake.

"Erza..! Thank goodness!" sighed Mira a breath of relief.

"M…Mi…ra…?"

"Don't speak, you still need to heal. I'll get us out of here in no time, and the-"

*sheuk*

The white haired mage felt a sharp pain emanating from her lung, words unable to escape her mouth. She slowly looked down at her chest, only to see a black, obsidian blade coming out of her chest, and then go through Erza's back. He hand felt wet, as the crimson life fluid drained out of her punctured lung and dripped to the ground. She had no time to recollect what happened, before her wings gave way, and she started spiraling down towards the sandy shores of the beach. Round and round her vision went, as it eventually blackened into nothingness.

She had no idea how much time had passed. She had no idea where she was, or what she felt. There was only darkness, and increased difficulty in taking in air as her lung was filling up with blood. After what felt like an eternity, she mustered enough strength to stir her eyes open. She could barely make out the white cloaks of the nobles, their red eyes looking down at them. There was a satisfied grin on Urokai's face, while the other two expressed disappointment.

She tilted her head to her side. Erza lay still, her eyes deprived of color and life. She was soaked in enough blood to stain her clothes in a Scarlet hue. Tears escaped Mira's eyes, their warmth heating her skin as they flowed from her face. Silently she continued to sob, while Erza's lifeless eyes continued to look past her. With a rough jerk, Urokai removed Dragus from her body, causing blood to flow out freely. Mira's vision started to going darker and darker, her body going colder and colder by the second.

"Er….za…." she called out desperately, her voice only a small whimper.

And with that, the demon Mirajane breathed her last.


	24. Chapter 24: - Death

**Wow, it's been really long and I have to say that this story is quite popular as well! Thank you so much for your support! I know you might be overwhelmed by the characters appearing, especially if you aren't familiar with them beforehand. But rest assured, I have no original characters introduced. All of the characters you've seen so far are major characters from either Fairy Tail or Noblesse. Which also means of course that you need to be familiar with them to make it more enjoyable. But again, for those not familiar with Noblesse, things will be 'explained' soon enough in the story. Basically, the backstory of the nobles and werewolves and things like that. And of course, since I'm not sticking to the standard of FT saving character deaths, when a character is mentioned to die, they really are dead, so don't count on them miraculously being revived.**

* * *

 **Response to reviews:-**

 **Guest: - Sorrry, I know there's been a LOT of focus on the characters from Noblesse and almost none on Fairy Tail characters. Since this is a crossover, I had to make sure I gave equal focus to both series. Fairy Taill will soon become the center of attention after the next chapter. This arc is quite important to establish the Oracion Sies and Tenrou arc.**

* * *

 **Chapter 24: - Death**

 ***A quick recap***

 _Frankenstein and his disciple, Tesamu go over to the place in the human world where Raizel and Muzaka fought to near death to investigate the cause of the whole fight. There, they discover human weapons and armor, leading to the conclusion that humans decided to participate in this battle between two supreme beings. Which could only mean that their sole purpose was to kill Muzaka's daughter, Ashleen. They then encounter the now rejuvenated ex-Lord of the Werewolves, Muzaka who isn't so pleased to see them. For old time's sake, he was willing to let them go their separate ways, but knowing Frankenstein's stubbornness, that wasn't going to fly. Inevitably, they decide to engage in combat._

 _Elsewhere, Raizel, blissfully unaware of the situation, is at his manor/mansion that was arranged by Frankenstein forehand so that they had a place to stay at Earthland. Unlike Frankenstein or Erza and Mira, Raizel and Raskreia were knee deep with Ramen problems. Some members of Fairy Tail that had their hands free occasionally visited them to make sure everything was alright._

 _Erza and Mira's journey took them into an encounter with the traitorous nobles, Ragus, Urokai and Zarga, who were some of those that were behind the events that transpired the battle between Muzaka and Raizel. It was also self evident that they too were the ones behind the disappearance of the villagers in White Mist town and also behind Tesamu's werewolf powers. Although the Fairy Tail duo were able to hold Urokai at bay for a while, the massive difference in experience, power and superior abilities of the red haired noble proved too much for even the mighty Titania and Demon Mirajane to handle, and they inevitably fell in battle. And now, to the present…._

* * *

Urokai had a satisfied and yet irritated smirk on his face, while looking down on the beaten bodies of Erza and Mira. The gash inflicted from Erza's attack still burned as he looked at her defeated form.

"Humans" spat Urokai with a distasteful remark. "I just destroy their bodies right here and now. Otherwise this wound would never let me be in peace" he said, readying his soul weapon.

"Stop" commanded Ragus, holding Urokai by his shoulder. "Regardless of their futile effort, I should give praise to ability when it shows. Regardless of their inexperience, these ones here were still able to wound someone like a clan leader and even managed to stall a while after having summoned your soul weapon. Even dead, they will definitely be useful in our experiments. These ones here might be the top of the S class mages we keep hearing so much about. The previous ones all died from not being able to survive the experiments. But these two could be of some use still. When Frankenstein slashed your eye all those decades ago, he was a being who was on par with clan leaders, even if he was a human. But these two here are mere toddlers compared to the likes of nobles who have lived more than centuries. There are definitely bound to be other ones out there like them. I can't help but get excited at the prospects of our future research. Too bad Ignis isn't here to witness any of this"

Zarga, who hadn't spoken much so far, simply went over to their fallen forms, and began inspecting them. Erza's body was pale, unmoving. Her hazel eyes blank, unfocused and half closed. There was a light trail of dark red blood dripping from her now dry lips. Mira's face was still stained by the tears streaming off her face, which was now slowly flowing to the side. Like Erza, her deep blue eyes had a sad expression, blank and unfocused. Her hand was halfway across to Erza's body. Mira's silvery white hair was stained by dark red blood, almost as if matching her partner's scarlet locks.

"A pity indeed" muttered Zarga, before lifting them both up and carrying them over his shoulders. "Such wasted potential"

"That child….Mirajane was it? That power was NOT like the one her companion used.…but not one from our world either. Heh, now I see where this could lead. I'm sure this would change Zeref's mind about joining us" smirked Ragus in realization. He had a very satisfied expression on his face. He had gained more than he could've imagined that night. No S class mages their group had captured before came close to how valuable these two could be.

And with that, the three disappeared, just as mysteriously as the way they came. The only sounds that filled that tragedy filled night were the solitary crashing of the waves washing over the dregs of the obliterated beach sand from the battle. The blood scattered was already beginning to crack and dry, turning darker and the wind sweeping over them ever more so. No sounds escaped the nearby village either. The presence of humans, nobles or anything that resembled a life form was naught. Nothing would disturb the morbidity of this place for days.

* * *

 **Meanwhile, with Frankenstein and Muzaka**

Frankenstein stood panting slightly, eyes frowning upon the ex-werewolf Lord who wasn't even warmed up. Granted, Frankenstein wasn't using his full strength or even dark spear for that matter. Still, he didn't expect that Muzaka would retain all of his previous strength with no penalty on his body after their epic fight, unlike Raizel. His priceless suit was torn here and there, and that was a constant irritation on his mind. He forced himself to forget about it for the time being.

Tesamu was equally surprised as well and almost already done for. _How could he have that much stamina?_ he thought to himself. Regeneration, even if powerful, still works based on the creature's ability to withstand the rapid process of cellular multiplication. For werewolves, it consumed a LOT of their stamina in exchange for regenerating body parts. The higher the damage, higher is the price. This was the reason that Tesamu's wasn't all that powerful, since he was only part werewolf. It simply took too much effort to do so. But Muzaka had no trouble pushing the two of them around, and even had stamina to spare to fight them and also to regenerate damage. Truly, he deserved the mantle of the Lord of the werewolves.

"This is pointless" said Muzaka "Neither of us has anything against each other, so why…do you insist on continuing this…? Even after I'm willing to forgive Raizel for stopping me so long back. My only wish was to avenge my daughter's death. I was even considerate enough to side with you humans over my family?! Even though it was the humans who took her away from me! Tell me, Frankenstein, how…is that remotely FAIR?!" he roared, waving his hands to his side.

"I don't care" glared the blond scientist "You hurt master, and THAT is more than enough reason for me to settle things with you". He was as ready to go at it as he was before, even if it meant he might likely fall, or worse, be consumed by Dark Spear. If he didn't settle things here and now, Muzaka would become a problem he'd have to deal with later on.

"Alright Muzaka-nim….we shall retreat for now" said Tesamu, with a slight bow.

"WHAT?!" the crazy scientist, giving his disciple a sharp look of shock and rage. "What's the meaning of this?!"

"Teacher, please listen…..no matter how we go about it, there's no getting out of this fight without a scratch….best case we'd be too beaten to make it back to Fairy Tail….and besides, I believe teacher's Dark Spear has been acting up since Muzaka dealt some heavy damage during your fight…..there's a human settlement nearby…you get what I'm saying?" explained Tesamu.

"Grr…..!"" Tesamu was right…..the longer this fight dragged on, the humans nearby were bound to notice something amiss and get involved….his master wouldn't prefer that to anything. "Alright….." said the blond scientist, lowering his aura.

"Hmph…..looks like someone's not as hot headed as their mentor…" said Muzaka, his aura calming down. "You and Raizel have already denied me once before. That won't happen again. Even so, I harbor no ill will towards the nobles or you for that matter. I'm willing to abide by that, so if you have any pride as a human, you'll stay out of my way as well, Frankenstein. Even now, I am quite elated that Raizel managed to recover from our fight and can finally lead a peaceful life. He deserves it. Which is why" Muzaka turned his back to them, preparing to disappear. "May our paths never cross again" And with that, the form of the former werewolf lord was gone.

"Tch…" grunted Frankenstein, dusting off his outfit which now had claw marks and blood on them. What a mess! It pissed him off thinking that he'd have to wear this outfit until he got back to his master's mansion. That, or either he'd have to go to his master's mansion here at Lukedonia. Muzaka may not mean harm to his master, but if he was with the werewolves now, and they were up to no good, master was bound to get involved in the future. Still, the more pressing issue was that what they discovered here didn't help them at all and only justified Muzaka's actions.

"Let's head back, teacher"

"Yeah…." Replied Frankenstein halfheartedly, his head swirling with what their next course of action should be and what he was going to tell his master.

* * *

 **Guild of Fairy Tail**

The old master was getting rather uneasy on his feet. It was quite usual for any mage to be away on a quest for a couple of days, and even more so for an S class mage quest. But this wasn't any usual quest was it? The very description of it was….off. It had already been weeks, and there was no news about them anywhere. Not even a letter or any sort of response from either Erza or Mira. The atmosphere in the guild was one of unease, and had been that way since the past week. The absence of the ever cheerful Mira brightening up the day for everyone in the guild seemed like a thing from so long ago, and how could anyone forget Erza's criticism about everyone's actions after they came back from a quest? The mages of Fairy Tail tried their best not to add to the gloomy mood, but it was slowly getting to them.

Natsu who was usually causing chaos in the guild overturning tables and setting fire to things was eerily silent and usually only visited the guild every now and then to grab a quest off the notice board. Gray, who'd find the silliest reasons to pick a fight with his rival, often only greeted guild members every now and then to announce his presence and be on his way. Lucy would still converse with everyone, trying to uplift their spirits. Somehow, that helped, even if a little. It was reassuring. Juvia's occasional attempts to seduce Gray would help clear the moody atmosphere too. Surprisingly, Levy spent most of her time showing Raskreia and Rai around time, teaching them about new things and the culture of things in magnolia. It was during one of those days that she heard about Frankenstein and his disciple's return, which also gave some hope to the guild members. They really needed some motivation, because when Cana goes from drinking a whole barrel of alcohol to just a glass of beer every day, you KNOW something is wrong.

"No…..this isn't Fairy tail…." Remarked Makarov to himself. "Not a gloomy place like this" he said to himself.

"What's wrong master? You seem troubled" asked Lucy, concerned yet in a sweet voice. For a second, Makarov thought he'd seen Mira in her. He shook his head.

"Nothing really…..I was thinking if I should send someone to look for Erza and Mira. I feel any news about either of them is what this guild needs to clear this disposition. Now that Frankenstein is back…" he drifted off.

"I know what you mean. I was beginning to feel the same way. I mean…..seeing Natsu like…that is unsettling" pointed out the blonde celestial mage. Natsu dragneel sat across a table with Elfman and gray, his mind scanning the contents of a request sheet. He seemed uninterested. He was currently chomping on some burning coal, not even trying to make small talk with either occupants of his table. Normally, Gray and Natsu would be at each other's throats for no reason and drag the others into a brawl for no reason.

"I know!" chimed Lucy, clasping her hands. "Now that Frankenstein is here, why don't we ask Rai or Raskreia to check on them? I'm pretty sure they're doing well, and were just too engrossed in the quest to keep us updated. Having someone inform us about how well they're doing SHOULD uplift everyone's spirits! I know it'll work!"

"Yes….let's do that!" agreed the master "Is Levy with them?"

"No….I don't think so. I believe she and Juvia were talking about accompanying Gajeel for something"

"That's unfortunate….perhaps we could send Natsu or Gray?"

"Too late for that" pointed out Lucy, to the now empty table where Salamander and the Ice mage were sitting just moments ago.

"Argh…fine, maybe you should just go yourself" suggested Makarov, at which point they were interrupted pleasantly.

"Oh, master….how convenient. I was hoping we could talk" said Frankenstein, his tattered suit from his encounter with Muzaka now replaced with a spotless, perfectly tailored one.

"Frankenstein! How nice of you to visit! We were just talking about you!" said Lucy happily.

"Oh? Would this perhaps have to do with Mira and Erza's absence?" he asked, quick to the point. The shock on Lucy's and Makarov's faces were evident.

"How did you…?"

"From levy. I got updates. I learnt a few things on my trip too. And it doesn't look like this quest is what it seems it is. I believe you're right in getting worried. Now that I'm here, master insisted that he go and investigate. I couldn't refuse, so I came here to tell you that Master and Raskreia have left in order to look for them both." He explained. Always the one with answers, thought Lucy, impressed.

"That's….good to know! I'm surprised you thought this through this far and even took decisions based on it…." remarked Makarov. He was still taking in all of what Frankenstein said.

"I would go myself, but master insisted that he would investigate their prolonged absence himself. He also wanted to go alone, but I couldn't have him using up his life force, even if it can be replenished. So Raskreia will be the one who shall handle most of the fighting, if there will be any." Added the blond scientist. "And I too, sincerely hope that there really is nothing to worry about."

A shiver went down Lucy's spine. Frankenstein may sound frightening at times, but it was always soothing to hear him comfort them when they needed it. This time however, his voice was lathered with worry and tension. Although he was good at hiding his true emotions, this time, Lucy could tell. Somehow. She took a long breath and tried to calm herself. _It's gonna be ok, and they're probably even returning along with them,_ she told herself. They would have a huge party for successfully finishing that mysterious S class quest and the whole guild shall be full of life again. She believed as such.

* * *

 **A few days later, with Raskreia and Raizel near White Mist Town**

Even Raskreia, who was still learning the ways of social interaction could tell that something was bothering Raizel. Ever since Frankenstein reported everything he'd learnt from their investigation, Raizel was….troubled. He would talk less, seclude himself, and even forget to eat Ramen he'd prepared only moments before. This wasn't like him, especially him forgetting to consume his Ramen. Their journey to find this 'White Mist Town' had been a difficult one, and not because of Raizel's seclusion. Even in Lukedonia, she hadn't seen a settlement this far away from civilization, and certainly not one that was naturally this hard to reach. Heck, even Raizel's mansion, which was by itself a mystery in Lukedonia, wasn't as hard to reach.

* * *

Back at the guild, Makarov's worry was plainly visible. He would keep dwindling with his thumbs, and often look down at the floor, lost in thoughts. He maintained silence throughout the day and remained in his chambers, speaking to no one. Macao, Wakaba, Elfman, Lucy and even Gajeel tried their best to cheer him up, but nothing would shake the perplexed master.

* * *

Eventually, Raizel and Raskreia made it to the tiny, mist covered town. It was as silent as the lonely sacred chamber of Lukedonia that was unused since centuries. The trio looked around, but nothing suggested any presence of human beings or living creatures for _days_. It's as if all trace of life had been erased, any evidence that suggested otherwise destroyed.

"What a macabre town" remarked Raizel.

"How odd. You would think that a town that faced such a crisis would have _something_ happening" pondered the noble beauty.

After about an hour of wandering around, they eventually discovered the coast. The endless sea seemed to stretch out for miles till the end of the earth. The ground's soft sand would sway with the wind, letting out a solitary wail as the wind passed through the nearby rocks and foliage. It seemed hopeless, for something as dynamic as the coastal soil altered with every second, so any trace of things that may have happened days ago would have naturally vanished.

As they were about to leave, Raizel sharply turned his head, as if noticing something. Curious, the other two followed along. He stopped by some rocks, gently kneeling down.

And then he raised his eyes.

"This is….blood" he said monotonically. "It belongs to Mirajane Strauss". Raskreia edged closer to inspect. Indeed, there were a few 'dark stains' on the rocks, indicating that they were atleast a couple of days old. But it was unmistakable that those stains came from blood. Being nobles and being familiar with the feel of blood of almost all members of Fairy Tail, it was without a doubt, the same blood that ran through Mirajane. That wasn't all. There was a trail, although very, very faint. If not for them being the 'rulers of blood', no normal human or mage could've picked it up.

The trail went further and further into the foliage, towards the other side of the village, just behind the houses. As they went further, the traces grew more and more profound, with the blood of Erza also present along with Mira's.

"Perhaps they retreated from whatever attacked them" reasoned the female noble. Further and further they went, until a small patch of disturbed grass came into view. By this point, there was a strong, putrid stench in the air as well. Raizel, being in lead, pushed a few branches blocking his way and stepped front. He let out an audible gasp. Raskreia's eyes widened, for not even the most stoic nobles in the history of nobles could keep their composure against what their eyes beheld.

Two nearly decaying bodies were strewn about haphazardly. Their skin was pale, ghostly white, their bodies covered in wounds comprising of slashes, holes and bludgeon marks. Any color in their eyes was gone, replaced instead by a pale, deathly stare that begged for them to be closed. Dried blood was _everywhere,_ covering the majority of the wounds on their bodies, dried and crackled. Blank, pupil-less eyes stared into the void.

"No….." said Raskreia softly. Raizel gritted his teeth. He wished he wasn't looking at this sight. But there was no escaping it. The silvery white hair one body and the Scarlet locks on the other told them the identity of the corpses without question.

"Mirajane…..and Erza…are dead" stated Raizel blankly. But what shook him was not discovering this. It was the nagging thought that his arrival in this world was likely responsible for their deaths, for there was no mistaking the aura still faintly lingering in those wounds.

An aura that belonged to a noble he knew very well.

Back at magnolia, Frankenstein dropped the tea cup he was holding in his hands, spoiling his suit again.

* * *

 **Phew, that took long! Sorry! Before you ask me, no, it's not a mistake! If Mira and Erza were 'taken' by Ragus and his gang, how are their corpses still here? Well, that's intentional, and for now I can only tell as much. It'll make sense soon enough. Next chapter will be the end of this whole arc and will also include a timeskip! Thank you so much for reading, and I'll see you guys soon!**

 **P.S: - Somehow I get the feeling that this scenario is not what people expected. I can agree. The focus has been on the noblesse characters for the past few chapters. Given that this is a crossover, I couldn't help but give some attention to Noblesse as well. After the next chapter, the focus is going to shift to the characters from FT again, so I feel that it's still balanced. Do let me know your thoughts.**


	25. Chapter 25: - Aftermath

**Response to reviews: -**

 **Greer123: - Well, that was something that FT was lacking. I simply thought FT would be really good with serious moments. Hope you liked it !**

 **Fayre Eferhild Di Rozalia: - Yeah, and I'm glad the impact of that is positive (I think?). Because FT would have been so much better with serious moments like this one.**

* * *

 **Chapter 25: - Aftermath**

The sound of the waves crashing into the shores could still be heard all the way out here. It was difficult for Raskreia to read Raizel's expression. What seemed like a whole minute of silence passed between them, before Raizel slowly raised his hand, his scarlet eyes glowing softly. A warm glow contradicting the cold, dark state of Erza and Mira's corpses enveloped them, cleaning all their wounds and replacing their torn, tattered attire to a regal black and gold suit, similar to the Noble's dresses. Raskreia said nothing, and simply carried Mira in her arms bridal style. Raizel did the same with Erza.

The journey back was painful, slow and tiring even for the noblesse and the lord's daughter. It was not that carrying two bodies attracted attention from on lookers, for either Raizel or Raskreia used mind control on the crowds to make sure they were left alone. Rather the fact that nobles were responsible for murdering humans in this world. Raizel had given his word that no harm would come to anyone from Fairy Tail, and ironically ended up being responsible for the deaths of two of them indirectly.

Having reached the capital Crocus, Raizel got himself a cup of tea to calm his nerves. He wondered what the Lord would think of him if he saw this scene right now, acting so much like a human would in times of grief. This time though, Raskreia joined him for tea and the two shared a silent solace in trying to comfort the other.

* * *

 **Back at Magnolia, Guild of Fairy Tail**

Makarov was walking up and down the stairs in the guild, biting his nails. Lucy had already asked everyone from the guild to be present in the guild for the next few days so that when Raizel and Raskreia return with Erza and Mira, everyone could welcome them back and take their worries off their mind. Frankenstein was having a cup of tea, courtesy of Cana who was substituting for Mira's absence to handle the guild's bar. Naturally as you'd expect from someone who's main forte was alcohol, making tea was not really her thing. You could tell from how Frankenstein bore a deadpanned expression on his face most of the times, but he drank it anyways, as if to indicate that the flavor of tea was the last thing on his mind.

*Bang!*

The guild doors flew open revealing Elfman, the first one to arrive at the guild. It figures that he would be the one to appear first, considering his younger sister's past and also his overprotective nature. One could tell he was the most worried one amongst the group too. He said nothing and simply sat in a corner of the guild. Lucy sighed, and simply placed a glass of 'Sorcerer Magazine's recommended stamina potion!' in front of him.

*Slam!*

This time, it was Natsu. He came straight up to Lucy, almost nose to nose. The celestial mage blinked hard, bewildered.

"Wh…what…?" Natsu continued to stare, saying nothing and with a serious expression on his face.

" Gimme some flamin' charcoal mocktail shots" he said seriously.

"Coming right up~~" rang out Cana's voice from behind.

"Why the hell does such a thing even exist?!" protested Lucy comedically, eyes popping. After Natsu got his, he joined Elfman at the table. Next to arrive was Gray, who also did the same as Natsu.

" I'll take some 'Chillin' icicle fruit punch" demanded the ice mage, his voice mirroring his title.

"~~Coming up~~~" chimed Cana from behind once again, surprising the celestial mage yet once more. Following this, Levy, Gajeel, Juvia, Jet, Droy, Azlack, Bisca, Evergreen, Freed, Bixlow, Macao, Wakaba, Romero, Raki and the rest of the gang were soon there, all of them complete with their own signature drinks ranging from 'Ferrum Rum', 'Rainy wonderland', 'Leprechaun's nectar' till Makarov's 'Regular Whiskey', which was just plain whiskey. Lucy practically gave up trying to deduce the reason such drinks existed in the bar and wondered if this was the only place they could find them. But she was glad that everyone was easing up in their own way. It provided her some warmth. In all this time, Frankenstein still hadn't finished his tea and Tesamu was back at their house. She took a seat adjacent to him. Good. Now everyone was present. She couldn't wait. It would be a huge surprise to both Mira and Erza as well.

Just then, she heard a small crack. It came from her neighbor's tea cup. The warm liquid spilt all over his precious suit, staining the white shirt underneath. The look on Frankenstein's face then was one of pure disbelief. He stood up immediately, heading upstairs to get an immediate change of attire. Lucy watched, sweatdropping. _No matter the situation, he never can take soiled clothes huh…?_ She looked at the cup, a single crack travelling along the center of the cup all the way till the brim. _What a bad omen,_ she thought to herself.

*knock…..knock….knock*

Three soft knocks from the door echoed throughout the almost silent guild. Lucy nearly jumped out of her skin, as did everyone else. All of their attention went towards the door. Everyone save for Raizel, Raskreia, Mira and Erza were present, so no words were needed to tell who the visitor would be. Everyone was looking at each other, almost asking the other to receive the one at the door. When no one did, Lucy volunteered, and slowly made her way to the door. By this time, Frankenstein had also returned, and he could tell the heavy mood across the guild hall.

When she opened the door, she witnessed a sight she would never forget. The Raizel she knew had a blank, but a gentle face. Raskreia on the other hand was someone she thought looked cold on the outside but was caring deep down. Neither of them had either expression. Raizel had a sad, defeated expression on his face, his scarlet eyes trying to avert contact. Raskreia on the other hand looked strained.

But it wasn't any of this that caught her attention. Her gaze was only at what was in their arms.

Two people, carried bridal style , their heads drooping loosely. Pale, deathly white complexion. One with long, scarlet hair. The other with ghostly, pale white locks of hair.

"He..hey, what's wrong? Raizel...? Raskreia…?" asked Lucy nervously, her voice shaking. But no reply came. "Say something…will you…? What's wrong with Erza and Mira….?"

"They look seriously injured….." noted Gajeel slowly.

Just then, Frankenstein had also entered the hall after a change of attire. He scanned his eyes across the scene. His eyes widened.

 _They're not breathing….._

Makarov was trembling, but he composed himself. "Gray! Natsu! Go get Porlyusica! Cana, till then, prepare a bed for them in the guild's recovery room! Hurry!" he barked out orders. The fire mage and the ice mage didn't even notice that they've been asked together to fetch Porlyusica, the thought hadn't even occurred to them given the emergency. Cana likewise did the same.

"Rai….." called out Lucy, edging closer to Erza to have a look. She reached out and grabbed her hand. Her entire body froze.

The arm she held was ice cold, rigid but most of all, she felt nothing. _Nothing._

She retracted her arm by pure reflex, a horrified look on her face as she looked at Raizel first, then to Mira who was in Raskreia's arms, and then to Raskreia herself.

"No…" she mumbled, shivering all over, her hands over her mouth in sheer astonishment. "They couldn't…." she said again, quivering and tearing up.

"They….couldnt what…?" asked Elfman slowly, his anxiety hitting the roof. But he needed to hear no more. It was quite evident what Lucy was about to tell. All he knew was that his sister was again…..

"no…." he said softly, inching towards Raskreia.

"Lu-chan, what did you see….?" Asked Levy slowly.

"I'm sorry." Said Raizel in a guilt-ridden voice, breaking the tension in the air and grabbing everyone's attention. "I'm sorry, Fairy Tail" he repeated. He simply went over to the nearby beds that Cana had laid out for them, and gently placed Erza onto the bed. Raskreia followed suit. Shaking, Makarov went forward, and gently caressed Erza and Mira's faces. He felt only her ice cold skin, pale and lifeless. The nearby guild members were slowly taking in what happened.

"Erza….Mira….they're dead…." Quivered the old guild master slowly, tears falling onto their faces.

"Mira-nee chan….." muttered Elfman slowly, already crying.

Makarov knelt in front of them, doubled over, crying uncontrollably.

The doors flung open once more, revealing a panting Gray and Natsu, along with Porlyusica.

"Old man! How're Erza and Mira?!" breathed out Natsu frantically. "I got Porlyusica like you….!" His voice stopped midway, as if there was something caught in his throat, his eyes as wide as tennis balls.

"Erza…? Mira….?" Questioned Gray to himself, shocked himself. He went forward, the two faces with eyes that were eternally closed. Being an ice mage, cold was nothing foreign to him. He'd even stripped in snowy blizzards and mountains and shook it off like it was nothing. And yet, for the first time, the lack of warmth he felt from their bodies actually made him shiver uncontrollably. _No….no! Why?! Why do people keep dying on me…?!_

Natsu ignored his peers, went straight up to Erza, shaking her vigorously.

"Erza, wake up! Enough with the prank…..please!" he pleaded, half expectant, half anxious. "Wake up!" the shaking grew more intense.

"Natsu….stop…." said Porlyusica slowly. "She's already…"

"NO! THEY CANT BE DEAD! THEY'RE THE STRONGEST MAGES EVER! SO DON'T GIVE ME THAT BULLSHIT!" He roared, spraying a wave of intense flames all over the place.

"STOP NATSU!" roared Makrov in agony, but nothing happened. And then suddenly, he rolled his eyes and peacefully fell unconscious. Raizel held his palm in front of Natsu. Neither party spoke a word, but it was evident that there was no other way to stop him otherwise.

"How could this have happened…..?" questioned Makarov. "What madness is this, a parent forced to see his dead children in such a state…..WHO COULDVE DONE THIS?!" he roared, smashing half the guild with his enlarged hand.

"This is no mage's work" intruded Frankenstein. "If I had known this is what it would lead to, I would have stepped in myself. I regret I didn't realize this sooner!" he growled.

"Then do you know something, Frankenstein?! Please, tell us!" asked Lucy. Makarov controlled his sorrow for now, looking to him for any leads that could tell them what happened.

"Frankenstein, allow me" said Raizel. The blond scientist gave a nod of understanding, standing back. "The loss you have incurred…..is incomparable. At the very least, you deserve to know, for this is the consequence of our intrusion on your world. So I shall overlook the rules, just this once"

"Erza and Mira…their demise came about from beings known as Nobles" he said.

"Nobles….?" Asked Makarov.

And then he spoke for what seemed like an hour, explaining about Lukedonia, Earthland, the Nobles, the werewolves , the clan leaders and all the events that lead to Muzaka's and Raizel's final battle. Frankenstein joined in later on, providing details about their recent findings here on Earthland and their connections to the family leaders of the nobles and also about themselves.

"Clan leaders are immensely powerful. Even I would not be able to best a clan leader that easily based on strength alone. In terms of strength, I would compare one to be on par, if not greater than a guild's master" explained the scientist. "Plus, clan leaders are centuries old, much more than any human who has lived. The battle experience such a being has easily surpasses the experience of a 16 year old human…..Erza and Mira were simply inexperienced and overpowered in an unfair fight."

"No way….so then does than mean that even you all are…centuries older than us…?" asked Gajeel gasping. Now it made sense how the noble trio seemed so outwardly. Just in age, they surpassed the combined ages of all the members of the guild.

"That's right. I am currently 2376 years old, Raskreia is 1796 years old and master is 3528 years old. That is why, age is inconsequential to nobles. Its simply a number that isn't anything more. But to a human, we may seem like immortals"

" _Unbelievable…no wonder he picked up my skills so fast….a human having lived that long….how much experience would he have…."_ Wondered Porlyusica.

"But why?! Didn't you just say that Nobles wished for nothing but the welfare of humanity?! Then why?!" questioned Cana.

"The nobles are changing after having lived in stagnation for so long. This is what master and I feared and have known for long. There are factions that hate humans and think of their own race as the superior one. I'm sorry….if we had realized this sooner…"

"We shall be returning to Lukedonia to put an end to their treason. Interfering with the humans and their lives is unforgivable for nobles " said Raskreia. "I do not wish for you to suffer anymore because of us"

"I agree. It is too dangerous for us to be here any longer. However, the fact is that Nobles and Werewolves have plans for this world and we cannot call this matter resolved until we take care of them. That is why, we shall be leaving Fairy tail" added Frankenstein.

"What…?!" gasped Lucy.

"But why?! None of this is your fault!" insisted Levy.

"No…..we've already lost too much today, and you expect us to be fine for you to leave us as well?! Arent we your nakama!" called out Gray angrily. Raizel listened shocked, as people one after the other called out to them, asking them to stay. Internally, he was happy. He replied with a sad smile.

"Because you are precious to me" he said sadly "That is why, I never want to see you in despair again, even if it means to keep someone precious to me away" There was a certain warmth in his words, comforting and one filled with feelings of consolation.

"I'm sorry" said Frankenstein, giving a slight bow. "But I promise, once everything is resolved, we shall meet again"

"No…..I wont let you..!" said Elfman. "How can you be so cruel….? Whatever happened to all those times you helped us out when we doubted ourselves?! Didn't you provide words of encouragement to us back then? Just like how you helped me, just like how you helped nee-chan…." He sobbed. "Help us now too, like you always have!"

"Although I am the noblesse, I am no mighty being. I too, make mistakes. I too, can fail. This time, the consequences of that were severe enough, being borne by someone who should not have experienced such grief and pain. I am sorry…" he said, slowly raising his hands "But this is a price you should not have paid, hence I shall repent for it by making sure this will never happen to you again." he added. With a simple motion, he waved his hands in front of them. In that instant, one after the other, the members of the guild fell into a peaceful, and yet strained slumber. Master was the last one to fall unconscious, his eyes completely red from crying so long, his mind in a jumbled mess of emotions.

"Let's go" said Raizel simply. He gave one look back at the now peacefully sleeping members of the guild, and afraid that he may change his mind if he stayed any longer, proceeded to leave. Frankenstein and Raskreia followed.

Hours later, the guild members would slowly regain their senses, in despair and in need of solace. Confusion was rampart among the guild members. Gone were Raizel, Raskreia, Frnakenstein and Tesamu. There would be no trace of them anywhere in magnolia, and even their house that Frankenstein had prepared for Raizel was empty, no trace of them ever being in Magnolia. The funeral for Erza and Mira felt like it lasted for days, leaving wounds that would not disappear for a long, long time.

Fairy tail would soon fall apart. With the nobles vanished, along with Erza and Mira, the guild had truly lost its light. Makarov would spend hours trying to drink away his sorrow, or crouch against the corner of a room for hours. Cana would stay shut in her dorm room, either drunk or in bed all day. Lucy tried her best to keep everyone together, but nothing changed. Natsu would wander about Magnolia endlessly, looking for Frankenstein and Raizel. Lucy would sometime join him as well, but days passed and even she gave up, losing all hope. Gray secluded himself to the mountains, in order to train. Elfman was hit the worst. He would always be at the cemetery, spending hours guarding Mira's gravestone, and talking to her. Levy spent all day with her nose in the books, trying to find clues about nobles or anything from the outside.

Raizel, Frankenstein and Raskreia on the other hand, returned to Lukedonia. Raizel secluded himself in his mansion, always looking at his window, towards the portal leading to Earthland. Frankenstein and Tesamu lost themselves trying to investigate the clan leaders. Raskreia on the other hand, spent days trying to learn about the nobles and why they changed the way they did. She would occasionally help Frankenstein in his investigation. But no matter what the 3 of them did, nothing would move Raizel, who now wanted nothing more than to simply stare at the world from his window and deliver judgement to the ones who broke the rules of nobles. Until the day they were guilty of their crimes, he would never interfere with the outside world, until he needed to execute his role as a noblesse.

Despite the Lord's attempts to console him, he would not budge.

And thus, 1 year had passed.

* * *

 **So, this was more of an epilogue to the entire arc, and I really do have my doubts about how I've written this. To be honest, I do feel its much different from my previous chapters. Whether it be in a good or bad way, I'll let you decide. I not as confident with this chapter as I was for the previous ones, kindly do tell me how this chapter looked! I know there was a lot of build up in this chapter, but they were necessary for me to show how serious the deaths of Mira and Erza was to Fairy tail and also to build up for the impact of the upcoming arc.**

 **I really do hope the story has been engaging up to this point. Feel free to leave me your thoughts. Until next time then!**


	26. Chapter 26: - Eara

**Hey guys, sorry for the late update, but I'll definitely try to speed things up from now on. Work kept me really busy. I know a lot of you feel like I nerfed the FT characters by a long shot, but in reality, I am going at this logically. The noblesse characters are still stronger and more experienced than the FT characters at this point in the arc. The previous arc gave me a chance/reason to power up Natsu and the others instead of going for the Nakama power route that FT usually takes. Regardless, I promise to find a balance between the 2 worlds.**

* * *

 **Response to reviews:**

 **Guest, Rikes:** I totally get what you mean. Recently after watching Hunter x Hunter's Chimera ant arc, I felt I did something similar here as well. But difference being that in my case, I still would like to rest that the Noblesse characters are still stronger than the FT mages **at that point**. It's not that they lacked power, but rather a clever and efficient way to use it against opponents, which is to say experience. But in killing off Erza and Mira, it gave me a reason to power up some of the existing FT characters rather than going for Nakama power like it usually happens in FT. I promise you, this arc will redeem the FT characters and from then on, it will be more or less even between the two worlds. Thank you for continuing to read my story, I hope I can improve it in the upcoming chapters.

 **Fayre Eferhild Di Rozalia:** Thank you so much! I'm really sad it took me this long to update, but my master's work kept me really busy. Still, I will definitely try to speed things up. Thank you again, for reading and supporting my story!

 **Greer123:** Thank you so much! A bit late from my side, but I hope you had a great vacation as well! Thank you for your support!

* * *

 **Chapter 26: - Eara**

 **Age X785**

The town of Magnolia. A bustling town in the eastern side of Fiore. Traders, Mages, healers, merchants and people from far and beyond come and go everyday like a well-tuned piece of machinery. Nothing had changed, and nothing ever will. The blacksmith's anvil clanged with a new sword being forged or some armor being shaped into form, the voice of travelers announcing their stock of goods to onlookers echoed throughout the entire town, the general store announcing their daily items on sale, petty fights breaking out at the bar on the other side of town and the list went on. Except….

The town's most prominent landmark. A town is defined first and foremost by the guild it houses, and Magnolia in particular stood out even today thanks to the name of Fairy Tail. Trade routes and the position a town holds within the council are often decided by the magical might of the guild it hosted, and Fairy Tail in particular was exceptional. Their mages were easily one of the most strongest beings in the continent. They were the town's pride and joy.

Now, they were the epitome of misery and suffering. The loss felt by the guild remained not just within the confines of the dingy walls of the guild but spread outward like a plague. With Erza and Mira gone, it was as if the guild lost two of its foundation pillars. Most of their members went their own ways, with their own goals. None were wiser than the other about them. Fairy Tail soon lost its position amongst the council, and the save for Yajima of the council, the rest were all too happy to demote Fairy Tail down to the bottom. With none of the core members left in the guild, the jobs for mages in the guild dropped like flies, and soon, the only thing not in shambles was the building itself.

Today was one such day, and Lucy heartfilia walked around the tables of her guild, clearing up anything left from visitors the previous day and offering drinks to the ones still present. The day was already done, and most (atleast the few members that remained) had returned home. There wasn't a lot of work to do anyways, considering their guild's current situation. Her own jobs weren't enough to pay for her 70000 jewels per month rent, so she took to doing odd jobs here and there, apart from also helping out at her own guild. Taking the place of Mira, she tried her best to stop things from falling apart. Out of the core members of Fairy Tail, only Natsu (who only ever visited occasionally), Levy, Gajeel, Cana, the Raijinshu (who again, were only visible every now and then), Macao, Wakaba and Romero remained. She could still recount the day the world she knew split apart. Now matter how much she pleaded or begged, nothing would change the minds of the rest that chose to leave.

" _I….I won't let it end like this…! I'm gonna live through to see us all under one roof, laughing and enjoying each other's company again…..I promise!". The last thing she remembered seeing was Gray's ice cold eyes, focused and razor sharp. She shivered. That was one year back. It didn't help that halfway through the year, their master, who was just a broken old man after losing two of his precious 'brats', decided he'd had enough, and left for places unknown._

Just about done, she thought to herself. She put away the rest of the trays, washed up, grabbed her things, to return to the solitary confines of her room. She had once glance at the guild, which was empty and silent. Just then, she heard soft knocks at the door.

" _At this hour?"_ thought Lucy to herself, going to answer the door, but it opened by itself, considering that she hadn't locked the place for the day yet.

"Yajima-san!" exclaimed Lucy, recognizing the familiar face of the old council member. "What brings you here?"

"Even after what happened a year back, this place still feels more like home than back at the council" he commented, sitting down at one of the tables. "Don't mind me, you could say I just feel like coming back here since I'm not a member of the council anymore. You should focus on them" said the old council member, pointing to the door.

Although that bit of news did shock her, what shook her further was the appearance of not one, but _several_ people. First came Cana, Macao, Raki, Romero, Levy and the list went on. Basically, it was a guild member gathering.

"You guys….! What are you all doing here?!" she exclaimed once again. Although she saw them everyday, and these were people the only few people that were at the guild often, it was still surprising to see them all at this hour.

"Yajima-san called us all here" answered Cana. "Said something important came up. And that's not all" she added "I can't believe he actually managed to get _them_ here. Or atleast that's what he's been telling us" she said, with an uncertain tone.

"Who…?"

Her question was short lived. Soon after came Elfman, his form still towering over most of the guild members. That was something that never bothered the guild previously, considering how he was one of the more gentler members prior to all of this. Now however, his eyes alone told a different story. Filled with emptiness, sadness and most of all, unquenched fury. And yet, unlike a raging inferno, his eyes were deathly calm. Lucy shuddered, looking down. The pain he felt must be unfathomable. She suppressed another shudder.

Then came in Natsu, along with his feline companion Happy. Happy's uncomfortable expression was all too clear. It was evident that Happy was worried about Natsu entering and meeting all the guild members at his current state, and he wasn't wrong. He was bruised and injured all over, as if he'd refused to rest in fear of wasting time. Scars from burns, cuts and even explosions were all over him. He looked taller, more athletic and mature. His face however…..Natsu's face spoke of defeat, betrayal and anger. He looked like he was in a constant state of irritation. Lucy's heart ached. Levy looked at him, and then back to Gajeel. If the fire dragon slayer was made to stand next to Gajeel a year back, she would've seen the similarities. Clearly Frankenstein and Raizel's unannounced departure had done a bad one on him. But the next one was nothing like what she imagined.

In came the Ice mage along with Juvia, in a tattered jacket, black pants soiled with dirt and debris, rips and tears everywhere. His raven black hair was longer and his physique was more toned than a year ago. His cheekbones were sharper, and his face more rugged. The heart's of many of the ladies present at the guild would've skipped a beat, if not for those eyes. Cold, sharp, razor sharp and murderous. Instead, their hearts only painfully twinged in uncomfortable fear. The eyes of someone who'd lost too much and was not willing to face that ever again. An ice cold resolve. Juvia looked helpless beyond measure. But perhaps, her company was what Gray sane enough to the point the others saw him at that moment. Lucy gulped, and suppressed her tears from falling. The things she knew were no more, and had changed far more than imagined. They would never go back to how they were, and neither will anyone else here for that matter. Knowing that broke her already injured heart.

Finally, as if to slam things to their faces once and for all, came in Makarov. What was surprising here was that unlike the previous 3 members, the guild expected him to be affected the most, but he had a _very_ eerily calm stature. As if his viewpoint on the world was more logical and almost zero emotional expressions on his face. Though the changes on the other 3 were frightening, it was even more unnerving when the expressions on a person's face don't match their feelings.

Yajima gave one look at the 4 of them, and turned away in sadness. There was silence among the guild members. Several questions were buzzing through the minds of the rest of the guild members, but none had the courage to ask. What were they doing so far? Where did they disappear off to all this time? Why were they covered in scars? Most of all, how was Yajima able to find them and get them together, when the rest of the guild couldn't? But none of the questions were voiced out.

"Master…" called out Levy. "You're back…."

No response. His focus was elsewhere.

"Master…" stiffened Cana. "Where were you all this time…?"

"Makarov!" called out Yajima, alerting the old master of the guild. That certainly brought the old master back to reality from his lost thoughts.

"I'm sorry, I was just soaking it all in" he replied. There was something different about his tone. Very observant in nature and guild ridden. "A lot has changed, even though it has been but a short time since I left" he noted, looking around. "I see that Gray, Natsu and Elfman have returned as well"

"You have no idea" said Yajima, sighing. "It wasn't easy to find them, and even harder to convince them to return…this would've goon much smoother had you been there, Makarov"

"Day after day, I lamented on what I could do for the guild, and how I failed as a parent. I couldn't even protect my own children. I doubted my own capabilities as a guild master and my claims to be a parent to everyone present here. I felt crushed under those feelings. In the end, I only ended up running away from my own responsibilities under the guise of finding a purpose" he explained, in a sorrow ridden voice. "I travelled around, in hopes of finding out any news about Mira or Erza. Leaving the rest of my brats behind, only to pursue a fruitless hunt for news about two departed souls, that was probably the worst point so far in my life. I, who was supposed to be a role model for the next generation to follow, let emotions get the better of me. Haha….such foolishness. If Frankenstein were here, he would surely laugh at this old man's delusions" he remarked, letting out a weak laugh. Natsu snarled.

"Tch…don't mention his name" he said irritably.

"Natsu!" shouted Lucy.

"What.,.?! You expect me to keep silent? I don't care why, but for all intents and purposes, he left us! When we needed him the most! I don't give a shit about his reasons, but he and Rai selfishly left us to ourselves when we depended on them! Through his actions, he hurt all of us who believed in him! I can't care less about whether he's here or somewhere else. I don't need to interfere in our guild ever again!" he snapped back. Lucy jumped back, shocked. She was shaking, not expecting one of her closest friends to snap at her so fiercely.

"Whatever…whatever's happened has happened. No point in talking about people who aren't here. But we are now. What did you call us here for?" asked Gray.

"Right. As you already know, apart from regular, official guilds, there exist dark guilds as well, away from the restrictions of the council. Normally, given their nature, no two guilds would work with each other, given their extreme difference in goals and way of doing things. Even so, they do have a structure, governed by three major powers at the top using nothing but pure force and terror." Explained Yajima. Reedus, the guild's artistic mage, drew up a flowchart explaining this very structure of dark guilds. "Of late, Oración Seis has begun to make their move. We do not yet know their motives, but we suspect its nothing good. That's why, even though its normally prohibited for guilds to engage each other, we decided to make an exception this time. It was decided that we would form our own alliance and face them before they can do any harm" he finished. There was a stunned silence in the guild. An all out alliance to take out just one guild?

"An all out alliance to handle just one guild? How powerful is Oracion Seis?" asked Lucy, voicing everyone's opinions.

"So far, any details about their abilities and strength remain unknown, but we do know that the guild itself consists of only 6 members. Each one is said to be powerful enough to handle a guild all on their own" replied the old council member. "Which is why, don't think of this as having to take responsibility for something. In fact, they were considered powerful enough to consider including you guys too. Given that an year back, you lost your position amongst the council, Fairy Tail would never be involved in such a crucial mission. But I and the rest of the council members also agree how foolish it would be to not include some of the most powerful mages in the continent"

"Just 6?!" exclaimed Lucy.

"What kind of monsters are we dealing with?!" added Cana. There were additional murmurs amongst the guild members.

"So who's in this alliance?" asked Natsu, somewhat unfazed.

"Along with Fairy Tail, it was decided to collaborate with Lamia Scale, Cait Shelter and Blue Pegasus. Each guild will be sending a team to represent their guild".

"4 guilds just to take out one dark guild?" asked Gray curious. Not that it mattered to him. No matter how strong they were, if they posed a threat to his guild ever again, he wouldn't go easy on anyone.

"It's natural to expect as such I think. Think about it, a group of just 6 people who are able to keep all these dark guilds under them? If they are one of the 3 Balam alliance guilds, this much is to be expected" theorized Levy, pointing to all the guilds under Oracion Seis in the chart drawn by Reedus.

"So who are we sending?" asked Macao.

"Right, so personally I think…" replied Makarov.

* * *

 **Meanwhile, somewhere near 'Nirvana'**

"I can hear it" said a man with spiky maroon colored hair, dark tan skin and a cobra hanging loosely around his neck. "The sound of all that is light crumbling to nothing"

"Don't be so hasty, Cobra" addressed another silhouette, "Not that speed is a bad thing"

"The magic we're looking for is here, Racer" replied the man called Cobra.

"The magic that will bring forth darkness and utterly eliminate light" added another of their companions.

"Nirvana" said a woman's voice.

"That legendary magic….is finally ours" said another man, holding a staff.

"You sure we should be getting our hopes so high? Is this Nirvana really all that?" asked yet another man, expressing doubt.

"Observe" replied the man with the staff. "Look how the land dies, simply by having Nirvana in its vicinity"

* * *

 **Elsewhere, in a flying ship**

"The Oracion Seis I see…..It seems like they are making their move" announced Ultear Milkowich, holding a crystal ball. "How will you respond to this, Master Hades?"

"Ignore them" answered the old mage in front of her, who was the current leader of the Dark guild Grimoire Heart. "If they start something, the council wont simply sit back and watch. We should take this diversion to look for the key to Zeref's seal. Let us hope that they succeed in eliminating some nuisances along the way"

"Like Fairy Tail for instance?" question Ultear, with a mischievous smile. The master only returned a sinister smile of his own.

"Heh, those losers? Hardly worth mentioning. After the fall of the demon Mirajane and Fairy Titania, Fairy Tail is worth less than the dirt beneath my shoes. Speaking of Fairy Tail, any news about those enigmas? Those newbies in Fairy Tail? Although not strong enough to pose a threat to me, but they could prove to be severe hindrances to our cause if they stand in our way" asked Hades.

"Nothing I know of master" replied Ultear. "The crystal can't pick up the 4 of them, meaning that they are either dead or that they are no longer here in Earthland. Either way, not something we need to worry about" assured Ultear.

"I see….a pity. And here I thought I might have found someone worth dealing with" sighed Hades in slight disappointment. Still, that was not going to need his immediate attention anytime soon, and he wasn't complaining either.

* * *

 **A few hours later, at a villa belonging to Master Bob of Blue Pegasus**

Lucy was pondering her current situation. Here was an elaborate plan to stop one of the balam alliance guilds, wherein a grand alliance between 4 of the most powerful guilds in Fiore was formed as a result.

"So why the heck am I included in this grand strategy anyways?!" exclaimed Lucy. Although that comment and her way of voicing it really felt off in the current situation, the recent developments really were hard on her. And the current team that Fairy Tail sent along only made it worse. The mood at a funeral was more cheerful than how it was at their gathering.

"Yeah I agree. I can't imagine what master was thinking sending over someone at your ability level" said Gray coldly. A sharp pain shot through Lucy's chest. She shivered reflexively.

"GRAY!" snapped Natsu furiously "What was that for, asshole?!"

"If this mission is as serious as they made is sound, then only those strong enough should be allowed to be involved in it. I can't have myself protect someone else in the battlefield half the time while facing stronger adversaries" he replied calmly in his ice cold tone. The pink haired dragon slayer couldn't take it anymore. He straight up lifted gray off his shirt.

"Then don't. She's far stronger than you give her credit. And if she's in trouble, I'll protect her instead." He said menacingly.

"What was that?!" growled Gray, raising his tone.

"Natsu, forget about him" said Happy, but to no avail.

"I said you can just shove it if you don't like being here, you shitty Popsicle!" retorted the pissed of dragon slayer.

"Guys, please stop it" pleaded Lucy frantically.

"That's it!"

"That's enough!" said Elfman, who was the only other member from Fairy Tail present in their group. "We have an objective, and if you can't work together to accomplish it, you can return to the guild" he said sternly. The two exchanged sour looks, before finally breaking off from each other, deciding it wasn't worth the effort. Just then, the lights went out.

"My, are might you be the delegates from Fairy Tail? It seems there is some tension in the air" came a voice from a silhouette highlighted by a stage spotlight. Three figures stood inside it.

"A pleasure to finally meet you. We are but the delegation from Blue Pegasus, the Trimens" said the silhouettes.

"Hundred Night Hibiki" Said a young man.

"Holy Night Eve" said the other younger looking boy/man of the group.

"Empty Night Ren" said the third one of the trio, with tan skin and dark hair.

" _What's with this sudden change in the atmosphere?!"_ asked Lucy to herself deadpanned. The trio were suddenly over by her side.

"A pleasure to meet you Lucy-san" said Hibiki flirtingly.

"Please step this way" added Ren.

"Is it just me or are you too cute?" asked Eve.

"Tch…what's up with these bunch of clowns?" said Gray irritably.

The flirting only got worse, tables were brought, drinks were served and even Lucy was getting uncomfortable at this point. Just then-

"~~My friends, I think that's quite enough don't you think?~~?"

The voice was so sickly sweet, that Natsu felt a gag reflex even without being on a vehicle. Gray made a face of disgust, and Elfman actually felt sick.

"Wh..what the?! What's that sickly sweet voice?!" exclaimed Lucy.

"~~Ah woe is me, without my darling here the world isn't as bright anymore. But worry not, Ichiya is here for you!~~" said a middle aged dwarf man with hard features, a sickly sweet suit and tie, an unshaved stubble and a large nose. Gray, Natsu and Elfman shivered for various reasons upon the sight.

"~~Clear all that away will you?! We are not here to mess about!~~" he ordered the trimens, and the trio switched from calling him 'Ichiya-san' to 'Aniki'.

"Talk about random" said Happy deadpanned.

"~~I have heard about you people, Lucy-san and the other three~~" he said again, obviously skipping over the males of Fairy Tail, only irritating them more. He then sniffed the air as if noticing something, rolled over with a pose. "~~Ah such a wonderful perfume~~"

"So creepy!" exclaimed Lucy, eyes popping comically.

"First 3 perverts and now a poor excuse of a mage and a clown? I've just about had it with this circus guild" said Gray. The 4 members of Blue Pegasus only then noticed Gray was standing there.

"Oh, you men can just run off home" said Ichiya uninterested, pointing the way to the exit. In a flash, something flew past his ear in a blur, embedded itself in the wall with a loud crack. The trimens and Ichiya looked to see a sharp icicle buried in the wall.

"If this is supposed to be a joke, I'm in no mood for it" he said, readying his fist. "And I wont miss next time"

"Bastard! You really were trying to draw blood weren't you?!" snarled Hibiki. Ren and Eve were shocked by the coldness in Gray's demeanor.

"Looks like you punks are itchin' for a fight" said Natsu, punching his fists together. He was dead serious as well.

"~~Oh what a wonderful perfume~~" sniffed Ichiya, appearing behind Lucy.

"Don't come near me you pervert!" screamed Lucy, punching him and sending him flying. He went flying to the door, only to be stopped by a hand.

"Interesting manner of greeting you have" said the oddly familiar voice. "I didn't expect to see you of all people here, Fair Tail" said Leon, member of Lamia Scale.

"Leon…" noted Gray, mildly surprised.

"Gray?!" gasped the other ice mage.

"You were in a guild?" questioned Natsu curious. Leon froze Ichiya partially and sent his back towards the Fairies. Gray then simply flung him again towards Blue Pegasus.

"Just what do you think you're doing to our boss?! Could you men just leave?!" asked Hibiki annoyed.

"Men you say?" came another voice, as the carpet under them unfurled and coiled itself around Lucy. The latter immediately recognized the magic belonging to Sherry Blendy.

Leon on the other hand was more interested in how Gray looked. Yes, he did hear about what happened to Fairy Tail an year ago. But the Gray standing in front of him had changed far too much. He was cold, ruthless and uncaring about consequences. He reminded Leon so much about how the latter was before Galuna Island.

"Enough!" came a commanding voice. "We are here to work together to defeat Oracion Seis. This is no time to be fighting amongst ourselves!" said a tall, muscular man wielding a staff and a head gear of sorts. Those in the vicinity recognized him as Jura of the 10 holy mages, on the same level as that of Master Makarov or Master Jose of Phantom Lord.

"Three guilds have now assembled, now all that remains is Cait Shelter" said Jura.

"~~You say that, but I hear they are sending only 2 members~~" said Ichiya.

"2?! Feh, why bother sending anyone at all" remarked Gray.

"Maybe they are stupendously powerful?" remarked Elfman.

Two footsteps grew louder and louder, until 2 figures finally entered the building. The smaller of the two walked, stumbled and fell flat on her face with a loud 'ack'. She picked herself up clumsily.

"Itai…" she said in a small voice, rubbing her face. "I'm sorry to be so late everyone. I'm here from Cait Shelter, my name is Wendy. Pleased to be working with you all!" she said with a small bow. She looked no older than 11 or 12 years of age.

"A child?!" exclaimed Lucy.

"A little girl?" exclaimed Leon. The name Wendy though, for some reason rung a bell inside Natsu's head.

"Where's the other mage?" asked Gray.

"Oh there she is!" said Wendy, looking at the entrance. A second figure, feminine, entered the hall. The reaction was immediate.

A mage as old as Erza, with light pink hair parted across her face, reaching till her waist, sharp violet eyes and dressed in a deep blue and white Gothic dress.

"My word….!" Said Jura silently.

"Impossible!" said Leon.

"~~This perfume is…!~~" said Ichiya.

There was only stunned silence amongst the fairies. Even the likes of Gray and ELfman lost their composure. To Natsu and Gray, this girl reminded them of Erza. To Lucy and Elfman, she was more like Mira. To Happy, she was strikingly similar to both. But the name she gave was….

"Eara" said the woman, and nothing more.

* * *

 **I realize it can be confusing to visualize Eara, but I have a drawing that I made for this character you can check out here!**

sreshtiyer/art/Erza-and-Mira-fusion-redraw-755272042

I would ignore the title in that page though, since that is NOT who she is in this story.


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